Can We Start Again?
by Dixie-Filly
Summary: After a treacherous attack by the corrupted Association, two lives are left shattered. A man broken physically, a women broken mentally, and both with a past that leaves them emotionally scarred. Can these two strangers brought together by a cruel fate pick up the pieces of each other's lives? Is this horrible twist of fate a chance...to start again?
1. Incident

**Hello everyone! So this plotbunny wouldn't let me sleep until I wrote it. This may be great...may not...but I had to get it out :) So...I hope you enjoy! I'm just happy to be publishing something again lol.**

The evening sky burned bright amber flames through veins of dark purple clouds as a certain pair of school guardians finished cleaning up after dinner and settled down in their adoptive father's luxurious living room. With a tired and heavy sigh the silver haired Kiryu boy slouched down on the couch while Yuki skipped into the room, triumphantly waving the remote in the air.

"Don't sit there scowling because I found it before you did," the slender girl giggled before jumping onto the couch beside her moody partner, the action nearly throwing him to the floor.

"Could you sit like a normal person?" Zero huffed in irritation as he cut his eyes over to the doe eyed girl who was sitting crossed legged beside him, her hair a mess and her pink pajama shorts slightly pulled up her legs from her position. The teenage hunter tried to hide his blush by quickly snapping his head back and sinking lower into the couch before mumbling, "Can you just turn on the stupid T.V. already?".

Completely oblivious to the boy's feelings, Yuki sighed and flicked the television on. "Would it kill you to smile once," she said deflated as she began to idly flip through the channels.

"Would it kill you to act like a normal person for once," Zero quipped, half hoping to see the girl's face turn red in her bubbly style of irritation.

"You're so mean Zero," the brunette teen said before flinging a pillow at his head, only to miss him by a few feet. The pale boy actually began to laugh, more so at Yuki's still determined face that was slowly turning red than from her actual failed attempt to hit him. "Don't you say anything Zero Kiryu," she threatened before going back to channel flipping. A short moment of silence ensued before Yuki happened to land on the news channel.

"Yuki stop," Zero suddenly said, his voice strained. The confused girl instantly turned wide eyed to find Zero staring intently at the screen.

"_This is an eyewitness report on the Whitfield Mansion arson. Just a few hours ago the old and abandoned mansion suddenly burst into violent flames, more than likely due to foul play according to the firemen on the scene. Sadly, locals have reported a homeless child frequently stays in the home and another has said that he saw a man entering the building just a half hour before the explosion and the fire. There are no reports on finding either of the bodies." _

Yuki listened sadly to the blond woman on the T.V. screen, angry and boiling flames finishing off the last of the old house behind her. "That's so sad," the girl said quietly before turning to her friend, but the sight of him made a gasp escape her in shock. If Zero had been pale before, he was chalk white now. His hands were shaking as his violet eyes stared horrified at the screen, his breath catching in his chest.

"It can't…" he whispered shakily as the blazing flame shown on the screen reflected in his terror stricken eyes.

"Zero, what's wrong," Yuki begged, her hand clutching his trembling arm, but before she got her answer, the phone began to ring. The girl was nearly thrown to the floor when Zero sprang from the seat with lightning speed. In a matter of seconds, she heard him snatch the phone from it's cradle.

"Hello," the teen answered quickly, his hand still shaking as he held the phone in a death grip. Yuki could only watch as she slowly got up and cautiously walked toward her friend. She saw he was listening intently, and the longer he stayed on the phone, the whiter his skin got and the more he began to shake. "Is he alive?" she finally heard him demand as she came to stand by his side. Her eyes began to fill with tears as she watched Zero cover his face with his free hand and lean against the wall dejected. "It's my fault," she heard her friend whisper heavily. "We're on the way," he said quickly before clicking the phone off. Neither moved for a few long seconds as the boy gathered himself. "Yuki, go get Cross, we're going to meet Kaito," Zero said with his eyes still riveted to the floor.

"Zero, please, what happened?" the frightened girl asked while taking Zero's hand in her own. The broken boy sniffed before inhaling deeply, pitiful, guilt ridden eyes meeting hers.

"The Association President is in with the Council, who wants me dead," he began, his pale hand squeezing her own for strength. "Who is one of the main people standing in their way of getting rid of me and turning the Association over to the control of the Council?" his voice wavered as he drew the girl close. Realization began to hit Yuki as she tightened her embrace around Zero, tears falling down her ivory cheeks. "They set him up…using a child," he said, his voice cracking. "He knew. He knew they were planning something, but he wouldn't risk that child's life they used to bait him with. He knew they wanted him dead because he won't let them have me," the boy choked out as Yuki held him.

* * *

The ride to the secluded hotel that Kaito had told Zero to meet him at was filled with silence. Cross, upon hearing the news, had barely said anything, a dangerous rage flaming behind his pale eyes as he drove through the town, Zero equally as quiet at his side. Yuki sat in the back twisting the hem of her skirt, her mind full of new worries and fears. It wasn't long before they were pulling into the parking lot, a miserable looking Kaito waiting outside one of the rooms. The silver haired teen jumped out of the car before it had even stopped.

"Why the hell isn't he in a hospital?" Zero growled as he approached his old hunting companion.

"The Association's like the damn mafia Zero, they'd find him in no time and finish him off," the auburn haired boy responded, panic still laced in his eyes. "I didn't know what else to do. As soon as I figured out what was going on I ran but…" the hunter paused, Zero watching him somberly. "I didn't get there until after it happened. Me and my partner barely managed to get him out before the whole thing came down," Kaito went on, his voice growing more strained as Zero slowly headed to the door. The level D slowly put his hand to the knob before he heard Kaito's unusually soft voice behind him. "It's really bad Zero," the other boy pitifully stated before Zero slowly opened the door. As soon as Zero entered the little room, he realized that Kaito's words would be the biggest understatement he had ever heard. If it wasn't for the miraculously unscathed face and dark wavy locks, Zero doubted he would have been able to recognize the man who was like a second father to him. With slow steps Zero made his way to his injured master's bedside, the sandy haired boy carefully wiping the sweat from the man's brow quickly looking up.

"I'll take it from here," Zero said stoically as he came to stand beside the boy, who quickly handed Zero the cool cloth with a look of sympathy before getting up from his chair and exiting. The hunter couldn't help but shudder as the sound of his master's breathing hit his ears as he shakily sat down in disbelief. It was a sound he wouldn't ever forget. Shallow, cracking, wheezing…dying. "God what have I done to you?" the boy whispered more to himself in shock as he carefully wiped the sweat from the elder hunter's ashen face. Violet eyes scanned the horrific state the famed vampire hunter Toga Yagari's body was in, and for the life of him, Zero could not understand how the man was still alive. A thin sheet covered the man's lower half, but the boy knew the damage was extensive. Livid and angry burns seemed to consume the lightly tanned skin, growing from beneath the sheets and stretching up the man's torso. The white collared shirt was unbuttoned, but Zero could see that parts of it were stuck to the deep wounds. A cloth was draped over his eyes, the leather eye patch sitting on the bedside table. What frightened the young teen the most however, was his master's strained and rasping breathing. The boy knew the damage inside was just as terrible as the appalling burns on the outside.

"I don't know what to do," Zero heard Kaito's solemn voice say as he looked up and saw him standing beside the bed. "I've never seen anything so bad before. I'm afraid to touch him, but, he can't last much longer without any help," the older boy said gravely. Before Zero could respond, both boys heard Cross's stricken voice behind them, along with Yuki's horrified gasp.

"My God," the legendary hunter breathed, his pale eyes broken as they scanned the ruined body of his friend. All of the teens remained hushed as Kaien Cross slowly crossed the room. "You always act so cold, but it was because of your protectiveness…even for a stranger's child…that you ended up in this mess," Cross whispered as tears began to trickle down his ageless face as he stood beside his fallen friend. Soon Kaien felt his daughter's arms circling around him.

"We have to do something…there has to be something we can do," the compassionate girl said through tears. Yuki didn't get off to the greatest start with the rough hunter, in fact she borderline hated him after he shot Zero in the shoulder, but she learned however, that everything the man did was to protect the silver haired boy. The shattered look on Zero's face was enough to break her heart. She didn't want Zero to suffer anymore. Both boys looked to the older man, their eyes full of doubt.

"There is someone…," Cross finally said after some silence. The teenage trio stared in shock as Cross sighed heavily. "It's a long shot…she doesn't exactly want anything to do with vampire hunters anymore…her fiancé was a hunter killed on the job a few years ago…but she's our only hope," he said while heading over to the phone on the night stand.

"Who is this person Cross," Zero asked quietly. Kaito and Yuki looked puzzled as well as the ex hunter began to punch the numbers in.

"She's a high ranking nurse in a hospital not too far away from here. I just hope she'll agree to this considering her past," he said as he listened to the ringing tone.

"New Canton Liberty Hospital, how may I help you?" a cheery, young female voice answered on the other line.

"Yes," Cross replied as the trio watched wide eyed. "May I speak with Emma Richardson please?"

* * *

"Nice work in there, keep it up and you'll be taking my job in no time," an older man with greying hair said to the young woman beside him as they both removed the green gowns they both wore.

"It would take me years to get to your level Doctor Kinney," the woman smiled as she pulled the green cap off of her head, shiny copper hair gleaming under the harsh lights of the prep room. The purple scrubs she wore contrasted against her pale skin as she freed her hair from it bun.

"You don't give yourself enough credit Emma," the older doctor smiled as he patted her shoulder. "All you do is work," he finished before leaving the woman to her thoughts. Before she could turn to leave however, she heard her name being paged over the intercom that she had a call waiting. Not used to receiving phone calls during her work hours, Emma quickly rushed down the white halls in a hurry.

"This is Ms. Richardson," she answered the phone a bit warily since the receptionist told her she didn't catch the name of the caller.

"Hi Emma…this is Kaien…Kaien Cross," the soft male voice on the other line replied. After a few long seconds, the young nurse was about to ask who he was when recognition hit her like a ton of bricks. She felt the color draining from her face as she gripped the phone tighter. The last time she had heard anything from him or anyone else involved with the Association…it was to tell her fiancé had been killed.

"Hello Kaien," she replied in a strained voice, knowing her emotions were blatantly obvious.

"Emma, I know you want to forget about us, but I need your help desperately," Cross began as the trio of teens watched him intently.

"I don't mean to sound cold Kaien…but I prefer not to get involved with the Association," she said as calmly as possible, twisting the phone cord between her fingers anxiously.

"It's not about the Association…at least…listen we don't have time. You remember Toga don't you?" Cross asked more quickly.

"I heard a lot about him but I never saw him…Cross…what's going on and why are you calling me after all these years," Emma asked with a heavy voice.

"The Association tried to kill him…you saw the news about that fire…it's bad," the man's voice dejectedly told her. For a second, the intern could only stare in silence as it registered what was being asked of her.

"Why didn't you bring him here?" she demanded in a hushed whisper.

"It's too dangerous…for everyone involved…they'll find out where he is in no time," he replied.

"Jesus, Cross," the woman sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Do you have any idea the amount of care needed to treat that? How am I supposed to help anyway? I work in cardiology. I've never dealt with serious burns before, not to mention damage from smoke inhalation. How am I supposed to get supplies? It's not like I can walk out of here with everything I need. And what about my job and…" the woman frantically went on in a rising panic before Cross cut her off.

"You are all he has," Kaien desperately cut in, stopping the red head short. "I'm paying for everything through a secret account…even for you. You won't have to work another day in your life…even if he doesn't make it…just…please help. Please Emma," she heard him finish, brokenness in the famed hunter's voice she never thought possible. A long silence ensued as the frightened nurse stood trembling, tears beginning to roll down her face. She didn't know how to deal with such a life altering decision thrown at her in such a short time. She knew she'd certainly lose her job if she just vanished for months without a word, but she did trust Cross to keep his word from her past experiences with him. Still, she felt as if she was being slowly suffocated.

"You know you're asking me to give up everything…again," she said quietly before wiping away the falling tears that were staining her purple scrubs. "For someone I don't even know and who might not even make it," she said, but quickly winced at the coldness of her words. She heard the man on the other line sniff quietly.

"I know," he said with guilt.

Again silence deafened the lines. Finally, after composing herself one last time, she said, "You better be thanking God Cross, you just got yourself a nurse," she barely managed to get out without sobbing. "Now what?"

"My academy has a state of the art medical complex so one of my students has gone to get whatever he can…we can get whatever you need," the ex-hunter said quietly. "Just please come quickly".

After receiving directions to the motel from Cross, the shattered woman hung up the phone with shaking hands. She tried not to fall apart as she quickly walked down the hallways that were her home…or what used to be her home.

"Hey Emma, want to grab some lunch?" she heard her fellow intern call from behind, but she knew if she turned around it would be too hard to say goodbye.

"I can't Eric…I have to go," she said painfully as she continued down the hall for the last time.

* * *

"She's on her way," Cross said solemnly as he turned to Zero, who still sat at his teacher's side. He had refused to leave the wounded hunter's side and so Kaito was sent to the school. "How is he doing?" the blond hunter asked cautiously as he watched Zero stare bleakly at his master.

"He's not awake, but he's conscious enough to feel every bit of pain…I can see his hands shaking now," the silver haired boy solemnly said. Gingerly the boy wiped the trickling sweat from the man's pale face. "All of this…it's my fault," Zero stated guilt ridden.

"No, this has been a long time coming Zero," Cross said sternly. "I just…didn't expect this," he sighed while eyeing his friend who was struggling to hang on. Before long a car was heard pulling into the gravel drive, causing everyone to turn their heads expectantly toward the door. To be safe, Cross went to the drawn curtains and pulled them back just enough to peek outside. Stepping out of a silver car was a small yet slender woman in dark purple scrubs, her creamy complexion stark against the fabric. Rich red hair that hung past her shoulders was pulled into a loose ponytail. A sweet face, that when she turned, was streaked with tears and the faint smudges of makeup. Frightened and broken green eyes met his own. "She's here," he said quickly before going to the door. When the fading green door was opened, Cross wasn't sure how to greet the trembling woman that was their ray of hope. But he didn't need to.

"Where is he?" she asked quickly as she came toward the door, her voice a bit rough from crying.

"In here," Cross answered quietly while holding the door for her. "Kaito should be back any minute," he added as he followed her in. Of course, she stopped dead in her tracks as soon as she saw the condition of the man before her.

"Oh my God," she breathed in disbelief. Forgetting her current situation, she immediately went to the man's side. "With this much damage, he's definitely in shock," she said while quickly checking his pulse, Zero getting up with Yuki and moving out of her way. A gasp escaped her when she felt his trembling hand against hers, not expecting him to be even the least bit lucid. "Jesus," she whispered, pity for the suffering man before her taking over her own pain. "Where's that boy with the supplies," she asked heavily while carefully removing the damp cloth covering the hunter's eyes. She felt a gasp catch in her chest at the sight of the awful scar that stretched across the right side of his face. She knew the injury was old, but the sight of the left one didn't offer her much hope. Taking the pen light from her pocket, her fingers gently lifted the swollen lid of the left eye. She wasn't sure why, but her heart seemed to beat just a bit faster when she saw the blue eye respond to the light even though it was awfully red and irritated. Even through the damage, she didn't think she had seen eyes as deeply blue as the one that was struggling to focus on her. And that's when it hit her. He was conscious.

"You call that kid and tell him to get here now," she uttered sternly to Cross, her green eyes now flashing. "He's waking up, and right now, that's not necessarily a good thing," she said before turning back. She watched as the hunter's breathing became even more rapid, the long fingers of the trembling hands beginning to feebly clutch the sheets beneath. The silver haired boy took a step toward the bed, anxiety laced on his face as the woman took one of the hunter's shaking hands in her own. "Mr. Yagari, if you can hear me, squeeze my hand as best as you can," the woman said in a gentle and calming voice. The trembling fingers remained still for a few moments, Zero moving closer to the nurse's side in a hurry. Soon however, Emma could feel the long fingers beginning to slowly wrap around her own weakly. She heard the man's breath catch in his chest hoarsely before a rasping and pitiful moan filled the room. "Zero, take the cloth and talk to him while you wipe the sweat from his face ok," Emma directed calmly but seriously. "He knows your voice. The amount of pain he is in and the shock is probably rendering him delirious, but we can't have him moving with these burns," she told the teen who was doing as he was told.

Thankfully Kaito came through the door at that time with his arms laden with duffel bags. "I asked the nurse to fill these with anything that would help with burns," the young hunter said through pants as he set them down beside the bed. "How is he?" he asked the red headed nurse who was quickly looking through the bags.

"He's coming to, but I need to get him stabilized quickly so I can give him pain meds and sedatives to give him a break from the pain," Emma said while pulling out a bag of fluids. "If I can do that and his condition improves somewhat…then we can get to work on treating these burns," she said as she began to go about starting an I.V. line.

Cross and the two young hunters worked alongside the young nurse to bring life back into the severely injured Yagari. In a short amount of time Emma had lifesaving fluids and antibiotics flowing through the hunter's veins as multiple bags hung above the bed. She had an oxygen tube threaded around the hunter blanched face, the green tank sitting beside the bed giving the man's scorched and irritated lungs a break. They had all been watching his condition for a few minutes, Zero still blotting the perspiration from his teacher's face and neck when the man began to stir slightly. The long fingers still covered in soot began to clutch the sheets more forcefully. Another painful and hoarse moan escaped the man's chest as came to stand beside Zero.

"He's waking up," Zero said quietly as his teacher's head lolled to the side as he groaned painfully, sweat glistening on his neck and his black hair plastered to his skin.

"I know…I just…I want to make sure he's completely stable before I give him powerful drugs," Emma said, a small ache in her chest beginning to form as she watched the tortured man. "But I don't know if I can let him suffer anymore," she sighed while a running a hand through her red hair. At the sound of her voice, the hunter finally struggled to open his swollen and red eye.

"Master," Zero said quietly as the rest of the small group gathered around, but the man's eye stayed trained on Emma. His breath hitched painfully as he weakly tried to raise his arm, reaching for the girl who was watching wide eyed, but he was too ill to get far. Still, his eye remained focused on the young nurse wide and frightened.

"I…I'm sorry…Luce," he barely managed to rasp out, his voice almost unrecognizable by his students. Emma heard everyone around her gasp.

"He must be hallucinating," she heard Kaien say quietly behind her, but she didn't want to break the eye contact the man before her was desperately trying to maintain.

"I'm sorry…I couldn't…save…you," he pitifully wheezed, and Emma could have sworn she saw actual tears fall from the wounded eye. "Don't…leave…me," he rasped, his ashen face riddled with guilt. Emma could feel warm tears sliding down her cheek as she knelt down beside the bed and took the trembling hand in her own, her pale fingers gently stroking the soot covered skin comfortingly.

"I'm not going anywhere," she said softly while smiling warmly at the broken man before her. "I promise, I'll be right here," she said through soft tears, squeezing his hand gently. "Now you just relax and rest ok, everything's going to be alright," she said before standing and wiping the runaway tears from her face. She could still feel his hand feebly fighting to cling to hers, but she could see his eye growing heavy against his will. "I'll be here" she softly said while gently brushing the damp black locks from his face, the motion finally allowing the exhausted hunter to close his eye while drifting back into unconsciousness. The nurse's warm smile faded as she carefully placed the now relaxed hand back onto the sheets. She stood for a few moments trying to collect herself and then quickly turned back to the bags.

"Luce was his fiancé years ago…before she became a level E," Cross said quietly as Emma drew up a round of pain killers. "She didn't make it," he finished quietly as she injected the drugs into one of the clear lines. "I'm sorry about that," the blond man said as he caught sight of the drying tears on the woman's face.

"No one should have to suffer any more when they are already in so much pain," she said miserably. In fact, she understood exactly what the delirious hunter was feeling and she knew it was pain that was stronger than any physical wound. "It's my job to make people feel better," she said tiredly before turning to the group. "Now let's see if we can get these burns cleaned up and wrapped."

It took the ragtag group hours to carefully remove the ruined clothing from the hunter's skin. Emma was in for quite a shock when she saw how badly the hunter's legs were burned. The majority of the time was spent gingerly cleaning the livid wounds and wrapping the damage skin up to each knee with protective gauze. With Cross's help Emma was able to medicate and wrap the many burns that stretched across the man's torso.

"That's all I can do for now," Emma said tiredly while sitting down on the other bed and pulling her hair free from its ponytail. "These next few days will be the deciding factor on whether he makes it not…but I don't know how extensive the nerve damage is from the deep burns," she said while watching the silver haired boy carefully pull the sheets up to his teacher's chest. "He sure is one heck of a fighter though," she said while pushing her bangs from her eyes.

"You have no idea," Cross said with a light grin softly shaking his head. "I don't believe there's anyone more stubborn out there," he said softly while watching his friend sleep peacefully. He watched as Zero, who had once again taken up his spot beside his master, smirk slightly at his comment. Yuki and Kaito stood quietly behind the boy. "Emma," the Headmaster said to the exhausted woman, her green apprehensive eyes flicking up to his. "May I speak with you outside? " he asked softly. Without a word the young nurse rose from her seat, and with a blank face, followed Kaien outside into cool night. As soon as the blond hunter closed the door behind them, Emma turned and faced him directly.

"You want me to stay here with him don't you?" she asked while shoving her hands in the pockets of her scrubs.

"Please Emma," Kaien nearly begged on the spot. "Because of the danger of the situation I'm going to have to send all of my students home. Zero, Kaito, and myself are going to be facing the Association. And Yuki…I'm going to have to find somewhere for her to stay," the man sighed tiredly. "The school isn't safe anymore," he muttered, his eyes staring blankly at the cracking asphalt. As much as she wanted to, Emma couldn't hold her cold expression after seeing the weight bearing down on Cross's shoulders. "Neither of them will admit it, but Toga is like a father to Zero and right now…Zero can't lose him. I can't lose him. I know I probably annoy the hell out of him, but we've been through a lot together trying to protect Zero," Cross said while Emma felt her chest tightening against her will.

"I'll stay with him. I'll take care of him," Emma felt her voice threaten to crack as tears threatened to start again. The poor woman felt torn in so many ways, she didn't know how she was supposed to feel. The cool breeze picked up, blowing her hair across her pale face as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"I can never repay you for what you are doing for us…for him," Cross smiled sadly at the young nurse, but deep down, he knew her world was shattered in her mind.

Cross and the teens stayed at the hotel long enough for Emma to drive to her apartment to collect her things. Of course the poor woman broke down all the way to the place she called home, but after crying so long and so hard, she didn't have any left in her by the time she returned. After helping her gather her things in the dimly lit room and after handing her a substantial sum of money, Cross gathered everyone into his car with the exception of Zero. Emma watched as the boy grasped the man's limp hand in his own, the boy's eyes shut tight in pain. Watching the shattered teen made the woman admonish herself for thinking it was only her life that had been changed.

"I promise I'll do everything I can for him," Zero heard her soft voice say as her hand gently rested on his shoulder.

The teen carefully released his master's hand before slowly standing. "I'll kill the bastards that did this," he growled coldly, his violet eyes flashing pure rage. Green eyes caught sight of pale hands clenching into shaking fists, then they slowly released. "This isn't the first time he's gotten hurt for my sake," the silver haired hunter said shifting his eyes to Emma's. "Thank you for taking care of him…and if I don't come back…tell him…I said thank you," the boy said heavily before turning and heading out the door. Emma stared shocked for a few moments before sighing heavily and sitting on the other bed. All of a sudden it hit her that she was now on her own with a gravely injured man she barely knew. Her eyes shifted over to the injured hunter, and for the first time, she could really observe the stranger who was now under her care. The first thought that crossed her mind, and she tried to make herself think otherwise, was that even in such bad shape, the raven haired man was quite handsome. But more so than his attractiveness, she noticed the many scars that covered his lithe body. The right side of his face was marred, an old stab wound adorned his shoulder, and multiple other jagged scars crisscrossed his chest…and now the burns were added to it. Feeling pity well in her heart, Emma got up and made her way over to his bedside. She resumed Zero's position and began to gently blot the man's flushed skin with the cool cloth.

"It's just you and me now," she said softly, not really expecting any reply, but she was caught off guard when she saw his hazy blue eye peering up at her. A few moments of watching him however let her know that the hunter was far from reality. His bleary eye searched his surroundings in a subdued panic, but he knew very well when pain would surge through every fiber of his body. Emma watched as his fingers weakly clutched the sheets as his breath caught in his chest hoarsely, agony evident on his pale face. It was at this moment that Emma realized that they were all each other had now. Both of their lives were drastically altered, both of them were in indescribable pain, and now…both of them were shattered. Feeling the ever present tears begin to roll down her cheeks again, the broken young woman took the hunter's trembling hand in her own, his eye slowly fighting to focus on her. "We're going to be ok," she whispered through trembling lips. She knew she was going to have to call the hospital to let them know she would be taking a leave of absence…which in her intern state…meant that she would surely be fired. The medical field was fast paced and only the best and brightest made it…and not showing up to work for months meant that she was easily replaceable. As she felt the hunter's rough skin against her own, she knew that with the wounds he had sustained, and the little she knew about being a vampire hunter, his career was over as well. And unlike her, he was the best in his profession.

"Somehow, we're going to get through this," she sniffed before shifting her eyes to his, her hand squeezing his lightly. She couldn't tell if the injured man before her could comprehend anything, but his eye, though cloudy, watched her intently. A sad smile found its way to the woman's face as she tenderly brushed the damp locks from his face. "Just don't…don't leave me hanging ok," she whispered even though she knew he couldn't understand, but almost immediately his grip tightened around her pale hand. For a split second, her gaze fell upon the very much conscience face of the hunter. Intense pain was laced across the ashen and scarred face, but the fire that blazed in the single eye was enough to take her breath away. The fight to remain lucid against such agony proved to be too much however because within almost the same instance the hunter had relaxed his grip as he slipped back into unconsciousness. After a few moments the young nurse got up from her seat and went about sorting through her things although now, the slightest of smiles was on her tear stained face. She wasn't alone anymore in the dimly lit hotel room in the middle of nowhere with an injured stranger. She had someone fighting alongside her in the chaos of a horrible situation.

**So? This isn't too left field is it lol :) Thank you for reading and please please review! It's the only way I'll know if this is crap or not. I'm still planning on putting more chapters up anyways...but still... **

**On another note...for those who have read my previous story Save Me...I cut it back down to the original 20 chapters. I just lost inspiration on the continuation of it but I couldn't leave it unfinished. I'm sorry for those who I have disappointed :( **


	2. First Meeting

**Alrighty everyone, here's chapter two :) **

Emma found herself wide awake in the early hours of the morning, the digital alarm clock reading 2:15 A.M. as she rolled over and sat up with a defeated sigh. It wasn't like she was going to get any good sleep anyway. She was up at least every hour or two checking on the condition of the wounded hunter, which had been a roller coaster ride for the past few days. The tired woman rubbed her heavy eyes thinking about how every hour seemed to hold something different. One moment he would seem to be improving; his breathing easier and his skin not so deathly pale, but then after a few hours he would seem just as close to death as when she first saw him. Right now was one of the not so good times as the nurse heard the hunter groaning quietly, the sheets rustling slightly from his restless flinching. The exhausted woman rested her head on her knees, exhaling a long, drawn out breath. She had learned over these past few days that being in top physical condition did not always help the injured man out, especially since his metabolism went through the morphine in no time at all. Pushing her bangs from her eyes and flicking on the lamp, Emma swung her legs over the side of the bed, shuffling over to her bedside spot in her black shorts and pink camisole. Taking the scrunchie from her wrist, she quickly threw her long hair up into a messy bun before sitting down next to the ill hunter.

"I don't know what to do with you Yagari," Emma uttered quietly, glancing at the small battery operated monitor that reflected his racing heartbeat. The hunter continued to grow more anxious, writhing in pain. Quickly scanning the notepad on which she kept track of dosage times, her heart sank when she saw he had another hour to go before she could offer him any relief. "Jesus you need to be in a hospital," Emma muttered after noticing that the hunter's restless moving had caused some of the fragile wounds to bleed through their dressings. She knew his body was still in immense shock, and without blood tests, she didn't know if his condition was stabilizing or not, or if he was suffering organ shutdown. But that wasn't an option right now. With a defeated sigh the young woman wrung out the cloth from the bowl of water that stayed by the bed. The tortured man didn't calm as Emma sponged the streaming sweat from his ashen face, in fact she grew more worried as his breathing raced ragged and cracking. "Mr. Yagari, can you hear me?" Emma asked trying to remain calm while grasping his hand in her own. The hunter began to moan hoarsely, Emma's own heart beating faster as she saw his heart rate reaching dangerous levels. She was just reaching for the syringe filled with a sedative when the hunter shot up in the bed, a strangled yell of agony escaping him as he lurched forward, Emma just barely catching him in her now shaking arms.

"No Luce!" the hunter cried in his hoarse and damaged voice, his blue eye wild and panicked as his raven hair flew into his face. Emma was desperately trying to hold the delirious man up without disturbing the many wounds that covered his torso. She could feel his body shuddering in agony, but this time, she knew it wasn't all from physical pain.

"Mr. Yagari, everything's alright," Emma tried to sound comforting while struggling to get him to calm down. "You're ok, just relax," she said as she felt him begin to slowly cease struggling. "It's alright, everything's alright," she soothed as she carefully held the broken man in front of her, her pale fingers brushing his wild locks from his face. She felt her heart tighten when she saw how shattered the blue eye that hazily stared off unfocused was. Soft tears slowly trickled down the scarred face as he fought to breathe.

"What…have I done?" he whispered broken as he lifted his glazed eye to Emma. Though he was still very much a stranger, Emma couldn't stand watching him sit there shivering in such agony.

"It's ok, it's ok…" the young nurse softly said while very carefully gathering the trembling man in her arms. "It's just a dream," she said as she felt him relax against her, his shoulders shuddering. Emma cradled the hunter's head against her shoulder as he began to weep softly, warm tears beginning to trickle down her skin. "It's all an awful, awful dream," she whispered, her fingers slowly gliding through his damp locks. She wished that everything the hunter was experiencing was nothing but a shock induced nightmare, but she knew the nightmares were a past that still haunted him. After checking to make sure none of the I.V. lines had pulled loose, Emma held the injured man close for quite some time in the dark hours of the morning. His heart rate had gone back down somewhat and his fragile body wasn't trembling near as badly. She began to worry if the ill hunter's body really was beginning to shut down because of the terrible hallucinations. She hadn't seen him fully conscious since that brief moment on her first day. Panic began to creep up her spine but just at that moment, Emma felt him struggle to push himself up from her arms. At first she was scared he was going to panic again, but instead the exhausted Yagari finally held himself up with shaking arms against her own. His black hair fell around his face as he fought to keep himself up, blood seeping through the large gauze on his chest. "Are you alright?" Emma asked softly while gently supporting him. Her voice brought the hunter to slowly raise his head to her own, his eye tired and broken, but clear.

"Who…are you?" he asked slowly, his voice raspy and thick. Sweat dripped from his face as Emma stared dumbfounded, not able to believe he was lucid. Before she could answer the hunter's breath caught in his chest as he clutched the livid wound that was bleeding slightly. Emma's hands carefully helped the man to lie back down, his eye still trained on her pale face.

"I'm Emma," she said quietly while propping him up slightly. "I'm taking care of you while you heal," she said kindly, a small smile on her face. "You were injured pretty badly in a fire," she told him compassionately while sitting down beside him. The raven haired man lay quietly, taking it all in as best he could against the searing pain.

After managing a deep breath, Yagari struggled to get out, "So…it's been you…with me, you're the voice that…I've heard," he rasped, his blue eye scanning her face.

"Yes, we've been here for four days now," she spoke gently while taking the cloth and blotting the glistening skin of his face and neck. The hunter's eye widened at her statement. Turning his head, he raised his arm that was taped with tubes, his fingers then tracing the oxygen tube that ran across his face.

"Am I in…a hospital?" he asked weakly, his head turning back to her.

"I wish I could say yes, but Cross said it was too dangerous so he called me," she told him. "Right now, it's just you and me in this hotel room," she said with a half-smile.

The hunter lay watching her, his mind trying to wrap around what was going on. Though he was conscious, he still felt like he was in a haze. He was going to try to croak out another question for the red haired woman, but his scorched lungs decided to act against him in that moment. The man's body jerked as a wave of hacking coughs snatched his breath away. Emma was there immediately supporting him as his body hitched, her soft hand offering him the cloth. She didn't like the sound of such angry and deep coughing, but at least she knew his body was struggling to right itself again. Finally the hunter got control of himself, although he was doubled over by now from the pain of moving so much and his chest felt like it was on fire as he panted for every breath of air.

"I know it hurts, but you're already doing a lot better than you were a few hours ago," she said as she stacked the pillows behind him to prop him up more to help with his breathing. She noticed a look of panic on the hunter's face, but then her eyes fell on the cloth he was holding which was stained a dark, bloody color. "Don't worry about that," she said while helping him to sit back. "Your lungs could probably put fried bacon to shame so this is part of the healing process," she said trying to ease his worry some. The two of them sat in silence for a few long minutes as Yagari caught his breath. The pain that was now livid was threatening to make him sick as the cold sweat continued to run down his body. Emma noticed this as well as she eyed him gripping the sheets.

"I can give you more pain meds so you can sleep, if you would like," she said quietly. His head instantly turned to hers.

"No…I don't want…to…see that again," the man begged her breathlessly. Emma instantly knew what the hunter was talking about.

"Alright, at least let me give you something to take the edge off. I promise it won't make you unconscious," she reassured him. After grimacing against a wave of pain, the hunter agreed with a slight nod of his head. "You know, I was really afraid you weren't going to wake up," she said softly while drawing up the medicine, his eye half opening to look at her. "You've fought so hard to stay alive these past few days," she smiled while taking his hand in hers. He watched her inject the liquid into the clear tube that was taped onto his hand, thankful when the sharp pain that blazed all over his body dulled somewhat. "'There you go, now that should give a break somewhat," the slender woman smiled warmly at him.

"Thank you," the exhausted man breathed as he closed his eye again, his body begging for rest, but he was afraid to slip back into the darkness. Afraid of the terrible memories it had been tormenting him with. Emma saw him force his eye open even though she knew he was fighting sleep.

"I…I understand the pain you are feeling at least somewhat," she said quietly, her voice now heavy as her green eyes looked to the floor. She could feel his gaze fall on her questioningly. "A lot of the time…I'm afraid to fall asleep because…those memories always come back," she said slowly. Finally she lifted her head to look at him, his eye watching heavily. "I lost my fiancé Allen a few years ago…he was a hunter like you," she uttered somberly. "I'm sorry about Luce," she said quietly, her hands fumbling together in her lap. She barely knew this man, and yet she felt a sort of kinship with him in that they shared the same stabbing pain in their hearts. The hunter stared at her wide eyed before she saw his eye grow heavy and his chin dip toward his chest before he started. "It's ok now, you can sleep," she told the weary hunter with a warm smile. "I'll be right here, so if it happens again, I'll be here to wake you up".

The hunter nodded his head slowly before he allowed himself to drift off to sleep. Emma sat in silence for a few minutes, thinking about everything that had just happened. This was the first time he had consciously spoken with her, and a part of her craved to hear his voice again. Even though she herself was exhausted, she stayed by the man's side through the rest of the night. Thankfully, he wasn't plagued by any more dreams of the past as his breathing remained calm and steady. By around six in the morning, Emma couldn't hold her eyes open anymore. Against her will, she eventually folded her arms on the side of the bed, her head coming to rest on them as her eyes closed in sleep.

Cold adrenaline rushed through Emma's veins as she felt herself jerk out of her sleep, her breath coming in gasps as her green eyes searched her surroundings. She felt something warm, however, around her hand, and upon looking down, she saw that it was a lightly tanned hand with a clear tube taped into place with clear medical tape. She quickly sat up, her eyes darting to the raven haired hunter who was quietly watching her.

"You were…dreaming," he said quietly in his still hoarse voice as he released her hand. Emma felt her cheeks flush slightly as she looked at him, her heart pounding in her chest.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," she stumbled over herself while pushing her bangs from her eyes.

"Don't apologize," he said while wincing. "I'm sorry…about…Allen," he croaked before coughing again.

The young nurse smiled lightly as she got up and headed to the mini fridge in the corner of the room. "Thank you," she said softly while grabbing a bottle of water and heading back to her seat. "I'm sure you'll be happy to have this," she said handing him the cold bottle, which he took gratefully. She noticed that his hands shook slightly as he drank the cool liquid hungrily.

"Why do…they…do that?" he asked while staring at his lightly trembling hands.

"You're still very weak, and it's also a mixture of pain and medications," she said with a grin, finding it surprisingly cute that the world's top ranked vampire hunter was sitting here asking her that question, but then she looked at the state his body was in and was immediately thankful he was even able to speak.

The hunter sat quiet for a few moments before coughing quietly. "Where is…Cross and…the others?" he asked heavily. Emma ran her hand through her bangs before sighing quietly.

"They um, they went after the Association," she said quietly. Yagari stared silently at the sheets before clutching them in his hands. Emma could see the anger, defeat, and betrayal in his single eye.

"The girl…did she…make it?" he asked without looking up. It took the woman a while to figure out who he was referring to. From the condition he was in and just barely surviving himself, she could only guess the worst for the child.

"I honestly don't know," she said somberly, seeing the hurt in the man's eye.

Before the mood got too heavy, the sound of an empty stomach growling filled the room. Emma immediately saw the hunter's cheeks blush slightly under his still pale skin.

"Well, I guess I better get to work finding you something to eat," she smiled lightly as she stood, the gruff hunter's face still borderline mortified. "Five days is a long time without food," she said while slipping on her tennis shoes and grabbing the room key. Suddenly a loud knocking was heard at the door and at first Emma felt her heart drop to feet in fear that they would be found out, but a nasally woman's voice could be heard from outside.

"Hey, I would like a word with you in there!" the woman demanded. Emma's gaze shot to the hunter who was just as shocked as she was. After peering through the peep hole, Emma stepped out the door and shut it behind her to face the sunglasses wearing mom in her yoga pants with a two little boys at her side and a baby on her hip.

"Um, yes?" Emma tried to play it cool.

The woman with two toned hair that was overly stacked in the back smacked her gum before letting the young nurse have it. "Just because this place is out of the way it doesn't mean you can get dirty with your husband, boyfriend, or whatever," she snapped. "We could hear you loud and clear next door. And…because of you…I had to give my kids "the talk" last night," she said as she got in Emma's face. The young nurse could hear the boys giggling wildly at their mother's side. "Have some respect girl…seriously," she shook her head before herding her kids toward her minivan.

Emma slammed the door behind her with her hand clapped over her mouth, her face a shade of red she never thought possible even for her. She dared to look over at the baffled hunter, the slightest smirk forming on his lips.

"She let…you…have it," he said as he lay against the pillows. "What for?" he asked, his curiosity growing at the horrified state of his care giver.

"Sh…she thought we…we were…you know," the poor girl stammered out red faced. "She said she had to give her kids…the talk…because of us," she said mortified. Yagari's eye went wide as it dawned on him what Emma was saying. Emma was pinching the bridge of her nose in embarrassment when she heard the hunter snigger. She turned to find him chuckling lightly, as best as his injured lungs would allow. Emma could only stare as she watched him laugh softly, and she had to force her heart not to beat faster as she watched him push his raven locks from his eye, the clear tubes following his movement.

"I'm sorry…I got you…in trouble," he hoarsely said before coughing again, his face going tight in discomfort at the motion, but the small smirk soon returned. Emma quickly turned her face away when she felt her cheeks warm after seeing his grin. It was also at this time that she realized she was still wearing just her black shorts and pink camisole. With the hunter being unconscious for most of the time, she hadn't even thought about what she was wearing. Now it fully hit her that she was dressed rather skimpily for her standards in front of a man she had really only gotten to know a few hours ago. Trying not to show her panic, she grabbed her cream sweater from her bed and threw it over her arms, pulling the front together hastily.

"I'll be back," the young nurse said with a flustered grin before she shut the door behind her, leaving the injured hunter still slightly smirking at the memory of the woman's horrified expression.

It wasn't long before Emma returned with bags adorning her arms. "We're lucky there's a little store just across the street," she said as she pushed the door shut with her foot. "I don't want to push it so we're going to stick with soup for a while, but I didn't know what kind you like so…I bought one of everything," she said breathlessly while setting the many bags down on the wooden dresser in front of the room, the hunter's eye wide. "But, since you're still pretty weak, we're going to start with chicken noodle," she said while opening a can and pouring it into a bowl she had bought. After popping it into the little microwave Emma continued going through the bags. "With your metabolism and with those injuries, you're going to need a lot of calories to keep up your strength," she said while stuffing loads of small bottles into the fridge. "I hope you like fruit flavors because its all they had," she said with a smirk of her own as she walked over and handed him one of the brightly colored bottles. "It was this or Pediasure," she said as he eyed the protein drink.

"I'll skip…the baby food…thank you," he croaked while twisting open the top.

Soon the microwave beeped and Emma had made sure the soup wasn't too hot before she sat down next to the hunter. "Now you're going to hate me, but you're not going to eat this by yourself," she said while stirring the liquid. Immediately the hunter's cheeks flushed as his eye cut to hers quickly.

"I can…manage," he muttered while keeping his stare.

"If I had a dime for every patient that has said that to me only to end up in a mess that I'll have to clean up, I'd be friends with Donald Trump," she smirked. "I know you're Toga Yagari, top ranked vampire hunter, but right now you are also my patient, now swallow your pride for just five minutes and eat," Emma said as she held a spoonful of soup out to the now scowling hunter. She had to try exceptionally hard not to giggle at the deep crimson his cheeks were. Finally, after throwing her a severely displeased look, the gruff hunter allowed himself to be fed spoonfuls of soup. Emma herself felt her own cheeks blushing as she watched him take bite after bite. The hunter soon forgot his irritation at being humbled after tasting food when he had been deprived of it for five days. Emma felt pity for him, thinking back to the woman earlier. She didn't think it was possible to confuse his pitiful and anguished cry of pain with something totally different.

Seeing the hunter want to eat boosted Emma's outlook on his recovery. When he was finished and after Emma had eaten something herself, she was ready to start doing her job. "Now you're really not going to like me," she said walking out of the bathroom in a pair of her scrubs, this time a blue paisley pattern. She saw the hunter's mood dampen as he realized what was coming as she sat down and pulled out a pair of purple latex gloves from one of the bags. "Being a nurse means you have to do all of the bad stuff like giving medications and poking needles in your arm," she said as she began to roll a small bottle in her hands. "I can't tell you how many times I've been cussed out when I've walked into a room," she smiled softly at the now quiet hunter. She had to stifle a giggle at how child-like Yagari's face looked as he watched her with apprehension. "How's your eye," she asked while removing the cap from the bottle of drops.

"Stings…blurry," he muttered as he watched her grab a tissue and hand it to him.

"It's going to take some time," she said before standing. "Now you didn't like this too much even when you were unconscious," she smiled sympathetically before leaning over and carefully pulling the lid of his still slightly red eye up. She felt a tingle run down her spine as his eye looked straight into her own, the warmth of his skin against her fingers. She felt him flinch as she squeezed the medicine into the eye. "Sorry about that," she sighed softly while watching him blink and squint in discomfort. Glancing over at the table, the young nurse picked up the leather eye patch and held it out to it's owner. "You can have this back if you want," she smiled warmly. The hunter stared at it shocked for a moment, his hand reaching up to confirm that his face was bare. She saw a brief panic flash through his eye. The poor man didn't even realize he didn't have it on.

"It's up to you, but, I personally don't mind seeing you without it," she said quietly before turning to look through the bags. The hunter stared at the patch in his hands. He had always had it since his eye healed from "that day", but such a simple piece of leather carried so many memories, a lot of which he didn't want to think about right now.

"It doesn't…bother you?" the man asked quietly, the timid tone of the question causing the nurse to look up surprised. The injured hunter stared at the sheets, remembering how he had tried to go without a patch in the beginning, but he soon grew tired of the stares.

"I've seen a lot worse," Emma said while standing with a new bag of fluids in her hand. "Spend enough time in an emergency room, and you see a lot," she said switching an old bag out for the new one. Sitting back down, she noticed that the leather eye patch had been replaced on the bedside table, it's owner still staring at the sheets. The young woman couldn't help but smile softly as she took the purple stethoscope from around her neck. After helping him to sit up somewhat, Emma listened to the hunter's still weak lungs. She could feel him working just to get a deep breath, and though he was much better than before, he still sounded awful. She had to wonder how much of the damage was permanent.

"We've got work to do," she sighed while casting the hunter an encouraging glance, but he didn't seem to buy her cheery act as he painfully leaned back against the pillows. Emma sighed softly, knowing that the hardest part of the day was now upon her. The blood stained dressings that covered each awful wound needed to be changed, and she knew it was going to be a painful process. "I know it's your first day really tasting reality, but I think you'd be more comfortable if I gave you some pretty heavy drugs while I change these bandages," Emma said softly, her hands wringing together just thinking about it. Half of her didn't want him to slip back into a drugged delirium. She was growing fond of not being alone in the small, secluded room. But the other half of her knew that it would be torture for him to sit through that, even with mild pain medications.

"No," was the firm reply that she received, her green eyes widening in surprise. She expected his expression to be harsh with such a sudden answer, but instead she found his face pleading. She knew he didn't want to go back into that dark and confusing place, but she didn't want him to suffer.

"It's going to be painful," she reminded him as her eyes cast to the floor.

"I know," he quietly uttered. "It's alright," his voice rasped as she looked up at him.

Emma nodded her head slowly before getting up and gathering the supplies she needed, her expression tight. After filling a small basin with cool water, she sat down next to the hunter on the bed. Again she helped him to sit up before she set to work cutting through the gauze that covered his chest. "Here we go," she said softly as her fingers began to gently peel the material away from the damaged skin. She winced when she heard his breath catch in his chest, his nails digging into the mattress as he fought to keep his composure. "I'm sorry," she whispered sadly while slowly continuing to work the gauze, her fingers feeling his ribs sucking in for air. Finally the young nurse removed the old dressing from the burns on his chest, but it seemed like only that had drained the hunter of any energy he had left. "Are you alright?" she asked the man who was now chalk white. Emma got her answer when he lurched forward, her arms catching him against her. "Just breathe…it's alright," she soothed the raven haired hunter as he trembled in her arms. She could feel him panting for air against the skin of her neck. "You're still too weak to put yourself through this," she said softly while gently running her fingers through his raven locks. "I know you're strong…and I know you don't want to experience that again but, your body can't do this right now," she said while gently helping him to lay back, his skin the color of the white sheets.

"No…please…," he weakly begged the nurse. The rouge hunter didn't have many fears, but he had quickly developed a phobia of being unconscious, and Emma understood that very well. She knew the last four days for the hunter had been nothing but a horror filled haze that he couldn't climb out of.

The young nurse sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling torn as to what to do. "Cross said you were a stubborn one," she uttered before blowing her bangs from her eyes. "You really don't need this stress," she told him while reluctantly reaching for the cloth soaking in the medicated water.

"I'll…be fine," the hunter mumbled in between pants, but he wasn't very convincing to the young nurse as he sat there chalk white and trembling.

"I hope so," Emma sighed softly before beginning to clean the angry wound, the hunter's breath hissing in pain as the cloth made contact with the damaged skin. Emma was just about to retract her hand when she noticed his posture relax somewhat. She flicked her eyes up to Yagari, who while still in pain, appeared to be tolerating the discomfort well as he sat gripping the sheets tight faced. "You're doing a good job of getting me to believe you," Emma laughed softly as she finished up cleaning the burns that covered his torso. The hunter didn't respond as he lay panting, his fingers finally releasing the covers. After applying a medicated salve, the young nurse scooted her chair closer to the hunter's side, his blue eye shifting to her curiously. "Put your hands on my shoulders so I can bandage these up," she said turning to him with a roll of gauze in her hand. "It'll be easier for you," she said warmly while gently lifting a lightly tanned and pacing a calloused hand on one of her shoulders. The hunter promptly turned his face away as he gave in and did the same with the other, his cheeks warming as he felt the woman's small and delicate collar bone. Emma wasn't even paying attention as she set about carefully dressing the wounds, her mind fixated on her task at hand. "There we go," she said as she finished, clipping the fabric into place. Green eyes looked up to meet with a single blue one that was merely a few inches from her own face. Suddenly she felt the warmth of his hands on her shoulders, her cheeks going red at their closeness. Before she could hide her own blush, she caught sight of a small smirk forming on the hunter's lips.

"Ms. Richardson…I think…I saw…you blush," the man's voice croaked weakly, but she could hear the slightest hint of cockiness in the hunter's voice. In a way, she felt like she was seeing the faintest glimpse of the real him.

After clearing her throat and regaining her composure, the young nurse put on a smirk of her own as she helped the hunter to lie back. "I do not know what you are talking about Mr. Yagari," she said coolly. "I believe you are extremely exhausted and are seeing things," she said while getting up to discard the old dressings. She felt her cheeks heat up even more when she heard him laugh softly behind her. "I don't believe my blush was any different than yours," she said matter of factly while pulling the sheets from his bandaged legs. She grinned to herself after catching sight of his face taking on a shocked look. "Are you ready for part two?" she asked sympathetically.

"Not…really," the hunter said, grabbing a fistful of the blankets and bracing himself. "But you're…going to…do it …anyway…huh?" he said before inhaling deeply, his irritated lungs wheezing.

"I'm a nurse, it's what I do," she said with a small giggle before beginning to cut through the bandage on the left leg. "Alright, I'll try to be as careful as I can," she said after finishing. She watched the hunter clench the blankets in his fists as she began to gingerly peel the gauze away. To her surprise…and utter shock…he didn't even flinch as the bandage stubbornly clung to the wound. Her fingers continued to work the bandage, and never once did the man signal any pain. Emma felt a cold chill run down her spine as she stared blankly at the half visible, awful wound. Pulling the blankets back over him, the young nurse quietly got up from her seat and went to the wooden dresser on which she kept the many medications on, her hands shakily grabbing a syringe.

After filling it, she turned back to the hunter, who was watching her quietly, a restrained panic and confusion written on his face. "This will help," she said quietly, her voice threatening to quiver as she took his hand. She couldn't look into his eye while he willingly allowed her to administer the medication. She forced herself to smile at him sadly after setting the empty syringe on the table, her fingers wrapping around his. So many emotions were written on the scarred face that watched her so desperately until his eye widened in horror.

"Wh…why…"he asked, growing more anxious. "Why…did…you?" he tried to get out, his words becoming slurred as he shot up in bed, only to lurch forward drunkenly, his eye wild with panic.

Emma felt hot tears begin to roll down her cheeks as she caught him, his hands feebly trying to push her away.

"Im sorry," she whispered as she held him close, his struggling quickly fading as his arms grew heavy and limp from the fast acting drugs.

"No…please," she heard him beg with misshapen words against her shoulder, something warm beginning to dampen her shirt as his head rested against her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry," she began to cry softly as well while leaning him back, his hazy eye fighting to hold onto her as a tear trickled down his face. "I don't know what to do," she whispered, her slim finger softly wiping the tear from his pale face. By now the hunter could barely hold his eye open, his body limp. "Please, forgive me," Emma breathed into the warm skin of the top of his hand as she took hold of it. She knew what she did was selfish and wrong, but she didn't know how to tell the hunter that his leg was ruined, the nerves damaged beyond repair. Even merely walking would now be a challenge for the once agile hunter. She knew she panicked. She had never seen something so bad, but telling the world's best that his days as a hunter were over to his face was even worse. She wasn't prepared to see the crushing hopelessness in his eyes.

The young nurse cried quietly into the now unconscious hunter's hand for quite some time. Delivering bad news had never broken her so badly before. She had never panicked. But this man she had only known for a few days…had her heart tearing to pieces for him. As her tears dried and she set back to work changing bandages, she was left to wonder. Why was it that this one, out of hundreds of others that had been under her care, had her chest aching so badly?

Against all of her reason, the broken woman gently brushed the raven locks from the hunter's face before bending over and softly kissing the smooth skin of his forehead. "I'm sorry…I can't give you your life back," she whispered sadly as she sat holding the man's hand while waiting for him to wake up.

**And somehow I manage to always write sad stuff lol. Please please please review please! Thank you :)**


	3. Catharsis

**So people are actually reading this! :D Thank you soooooo much Thecoldforest and LadyAmazon for the wonderful reviews :) **

The sun was already beginning to sink low by the time the unconscious hunter began to come around. Emma had stayed by his side for the entire day, her eyes heavy with fatigue. No matter what she tried to force her mind to focus on, she couldn't shake Yagari's look of utter betrayal and panic from her thoughts. She had spent the long hours desperately trying to think of a way to break the awful news to the already broken man, but no way of going about it made it any less crushing. Thankfully the hunter hadn't been plagued by his usual nightmarish hallucinations, or at least, he had slept quietly under the watch of misty green eyes. Emma was snapped out of her weary stupor by the soft movement of the sheets, thin fingers slowly beginning to come back to life. She watched as the hunter inhaled deeply, his face quickly taking on a grimace as his head lolled to the side.

"Mr. Yagari, can you hear me?" the young woman asked gently, placing her hand on his shoulder.

The hunter seemed to recognize her voice as he sluggishly turned his head toward her, his blue eye half open in a fog. Emma found herself smiling sadly at the man who watched her quietly, the effects of the drugs still making him slow. Although his body still felt heavy and uncoordinated, the hunter remembered quickly what had happened earlier. Emma felt her chest tighten as the blue eye that watched her took on a cold stare. She knew she had hurt the man by betraying his trust, but it still didn't make his angry stare any less painful.

"I…I'm sorry," she said in almost a whisper, fearing that she would break down again.

"The hell…did…you do…that?" the raven haired hunter asked, his words still thick and slurred, but the anger was well evident on his face.

"I'm so sorry," she said again, trying to quickly wipe away an escaping tear. "I panicked," she said quivering, her eyes daring to meet his icy glare.

"Damn right," he said in a low, forbidding tone, his hands clenching the sheets.

Emma couldn't stand it anymore. "I didn't know how to tell you," she began, but the wounded man cut her off quickly.

"That what?" he began, his words becoming more crisp. "That I'm…disfigured now?" he said, growing more upset. "You don't think…I know that?" he rasped bitterly. "Was it…too much…for you?" his heated voice scratched.

Emma felt the tears rolling down her cheeks yet again. Unable to look into his furious gaze, Emma began to shake her head slowly while staring at her lap. "No, that's not what it is," she whispered somberly.

"Then what…the hell…is it?" he seethed while forcing himself up in a sitting position.

Whatever it was that was holding the exhausted and torn nurse together snapped. Snapping her head up to face the hunter with bloodshot and red rimmed eyes, she said, "I didn't know how to tell the world's best vampire hunter that he is now crippled. I didn't know how to look straight into your face and tell you that you can't walk right anymore," she cried, the hunter quickly dropping his cold stare. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I drugged you in my panic," she sobbed. "I'm sorry I can't do anything to fix the nerve damage. I'm sorry that your life has been ruined," she cried painfully. "I didn't know what to do, I'm not trained for this," she continued. "I can't deal with the hopeless faces. This is why I switched to working in surgery. I didn't have to ruin any lives when they were asleep," she said more slowly, suddenly feeling spent. "I'm sorry," she said again, her voice broken as she turned back to the hunter.

Emma watched as he sat in a crushing silence, chewing on the edge of his thumb as he stared blankly ahead. She noticed that he seemed to have grown pale, his face drawn as he dropped his hand limply in his lap.

"It's ok," he said flatly while turning to look at her, his expression worn. "I'm sorry for…cussing at…you," he said, his voice lifeless. Emma didn't like the apathy in the man's voice as she watched him silently. "Thank you for…giving up…so much…for me," he breathed in monotone. "You don't have…to trouble yourself…with me…anymore," he said quietly while looking away, his voice dead.

Emma felt a shock run down her spine at his words. "Wh…what are you talking about?" she asked shaking her head baffled.

"I'm no use…to anyone…anymore," he uttered without looking at her, and Emma felt her heart drop to her feet.

"Don't you even talk…don't even go there," the young nurse said sternly, knowing full well what he was thinking of.

"It's my life," he said bitterly, cutting his gaze back to her, only instead of anger, despair infected the blue orb.

"And you're just going to throw it away now?" she breathed in disbelief.

The hunter stared listlessly at his hands in his lap. "You don't understand."

"No, you're right I don't," she said through her teeth, her frustration growing quickly. "I don't understand how wanting to die after all you've come through makes anything better," she said, her hands clenching in her own lap.

The hunter snapped his head around to glare ominously at the woman in front of him. "I don't have to sit here and tell you anything. I don't need your permission," he growled.

Finally, all of the sleepless nights and nerve wracking days came to a boiling head as the nurse shot up from her chair. "Fine," she said sharply. "You do what you want, but I WILL not be the one to tell everyone who is risking their lives to avenge you that you decided to off yourself while wallowing in a pool of self pity," she began to raise her voice. "Don't you get it Yagari?" she said desperately, her emotions running away with her. "Cross was a wreck when he saw you, Kaito risked his own life saving yours, Kaien's daughter was in tears, and Zero…" she trailed off, seeing his blue eye widen at the boy's name. "That boy…never left your side…not for one minute until I got here and even then…" she continued, remembering the devastation on the boy's face. "He was shattered…and now he's out there facing a very real death just to avenge you," she continued upset. The woman felt like she was coming unhinged as she forced back a sob. "And let me tell you something else Toga Yagari," she said while looking him directly in the eye, his expression absolutely shocked. "I didn't throw away my job…my life…everything…to stay up every night watching you suffer knowing there wasn't anything I could do and spend my days wondering if you were ever going to wake up to have you come through it just to have you give up!" she finished in a fury, her hands shaking violently. In that instant she felt trapped in the small room, unable to breathe.

"I can't do this," she whispered against tears before turning and quickly fleeing out the door. The distraught woman was too tired and too spent to go far, so she found herself sliding down against the side of the building to sit on the cool concrete, not caring who saw. As angry as she was with the hunter, she couldn't bring herself to go far from him. So, as the street lights burned dimly in the cool night, Emma folded her arms over her knees and cried whatever was left in her. After about an hour the young nurse had finally calmed and had done a lot of thinking. She felt terrible unleashing her pent up anger and frustration on the already devastated man. She knew she had been incredibly selfish throwing the fact that she was losing her job at him. She felt shame warming her cheeks as she forced herself to stand, her knees sore from staying bent for so long. With a heavy sigh, the red head trudged back to the door, her hand hovering over the knob in apprehension, the woman half worried about what she might walk into.

Her worry relaxed as she found him lying quietly against the pillows, his blue eye slowly rising to meet with hers as the both looked at each in apprehension.

"I'm sorry," both of them muttered quietly in unison, both of their faces surprised.

Emma was the first to go, her hands twisting together. "I um…I'm sorry I was so insensitive and…that I got so angry," she said as she stared at the floor.

"No one's ever…talked to me…like that…before," his hoarse voice said, the nurse wincing at his words. Her attention was caught by a light tapping sound, her eyes flicking up to see him weakly patting the chair next to him. Keeping her eyes low, the young woman shuffled over and quietly sat down, not daring to look him in the face. She heard the sheets rustling as he sat up. "I needed that," he said somberly, her face turning to his in surprise. A tired half grin spread across the hunter's lips. "Most people are too afraid to even think about looking at me wrong," he said as the nurse felt her cheeks warm. The hunter's slight smile faded as he sighed heavily. "I'm sorry…what I was thinking…it was selfish," he said quietly. "I just…I can't serve…my purpose…anymore," he said heavily. Emma saw that the hunter's face was so tired and shattered, her heart ached for him.

"It's not like you're a machine Yagari," she said gripping her knees slightly. "It's not like everyone who cares about you is going to throw you away," she finished.

"That's not it," he said with a sigh. "I can't…protect…anyone anymore," he said flatly, his fingers curling into loose fists in his lap. "It's not like…I could…in the first place," he said as he leaned back listlessly.

Emma sat quietly in respect for the pain that plagued the hunter's heart. She knew she couldn't understand completely what he was feeling, but her own chest ached as she saw the defeat in his blue eye.

"From what I've been told, I don't believe that," Emma uttered quietly, resting her chin on her fists as her elbows rested on her knees. "From what I've put together, you're always the first one to throw yourself in harm's way. That's why you have so many scars, am I right?" she asked honestly.

The hunter turned his head on the pillows to look at the nurse in quiet astonishment. "Yeah…I guess so," he answered her before coughing. "Damn," he managed to get out after gaining control again. "Since when did I…become an…emotional sap…like Cross," he sighed while running a taped up hand through his black locks.

"Since you're on lots of medications," Emma chuckled lightly patting his shoulder while standing, but she quickly crumpled back down into her seat as her vision swirled, her hand still on the hunter's shoulder for support. Before she knew it his hand had her own protectively.

"Are you alright?" he asked, Emma's ringing ears detecting genuine worry in the hoarse voice.

"Yeah… yeah I'm fine," she said collecting herself, a blush running across her cheeks.

"You haven't slept…at all…have you?" Yagari asked the nurse point blank, his hand still around hers.

"A little," she said trying to put on a convincing grin, but the hunter still watched her seriously.

"You need to…get some rest…before you get…sick," he said, a bit of guilt laced in his words. "I won't…die on you…I promise," he said with a smirk, his hand squeezing hers before letting go.

"Yeah well, you need to eat first," Emma said with a smirk of her own as she stood again, this time without the vertigo.

"I won't…until you do," she heard him rasp as she grabbed one of the fruit flavored protein drinks from the mini fridge, a devilish smile crossing her lips as she returned to his side and held out the brightly colored bottle. The hunter just stared at her sternly, not budging at all.

"You will drink this and you will eat before I do because your body needs it more badly than my own," she sighed as she sat down. "If you refuse, I will tie you down and shove a feeding tube through your nose and down your throat and make you take this," she while donning a sweet smile. The hunter stared at her utterly disgusted and horrified before snatching the bottle from her hand.

"Did I mention…you can be…damn scary," he muttered under his breath as the nurse went about preparing another bowl of soup.

"Has the great Toga Yagari met his match?" the red head laughed softly, happy to see him in somewhat higher spirits.

"Maybe so," he smirked to himself as he watched the young woman go about preparing the soup. Watching her work with sleep deprived eyes, the hunter couldn't help but feel guilty. "Hey I um, I'm sorry…about your job," he said heavily, the young nurse turning to him quickly with her face blushing red.

"No, no," she said quickly shaking her head. "That was low of me to say," she said shamefully. "Besides, the reason I went into medicine was to help people, but…I got so caught up in moving up the ladder…I almost forgot the real reason I started," she said walking back to her seat while stirring the bowl of soup. "That is…until now," she said with a sheepish smile. The hunter felt his cheeks warm as Emma's soft grin seemed contagious. "Now you need to eat," she said while holding out the spoon of soup.

"You're getting back…at me by…killing all of my…dignity aren't you?" the hunter sighed while eyeing the waiting nurse unhappily.

"Well it's a perk, but no," she smiled as he begrudgingly took a bite. "Dignity just flies out of the window when you're injured," she smiled compassionately.

"I still think…you enjoy it too much," he grumbled, causing the nurse to giggle. After both of them had eaten and Emma had stood under a long, hot shower, she emerged from the steam filled bathroom in a baggy t-shirt and running shorts toweling her long, dripping hair. The hunter couldn't help but notice her simplistic beauty as she ran a comb through her rich red locks, her creamy skin free of any makeup.

"Are you sure you're fine?" she asked as she handed him the remote. "You haven't had any pain medicine recently," she said while heading back over to her side.

"I'm as good…as I can get," he said with a light hearted sigh. "Get some rest…before you pass out," he said seriously as the woman smiled and climbed under the covers, the blankets lightly outlining her smooth curves.

"Yes Sir," she said before burrowing into the sheets. The hunter smiled lightly at the child like nature of the woman as she curled into a tight ball. Not even ten minutes into the crime show he was watching, he looked over and noticed her deep and even breathing. Watching his exhausted care taker sleeping so peacefully, the raven haired man felt something old and long forgotten begin to flicker to life deep within his chest. Quickly snapping his eye away from the sleeping woman and back to the bright screen, he tried his best to put his mind on other things, but right now there wasn't a lot to hold onto. No matter what he did, his thoughts always wandered back to the red haired nurse who was sleeping soundly across the room, making it hard to tear his gaze away from the pale skin of the back of her neck.

* * *

Emma's bleary eyes cracked open to faint rays of sunlight fighting their way into the room through the dark green curtains. By now the woman was used to waking up in the unfamiliar room, when before she would constantly jerk herself awake in confusion at the unfamiliar surroundings. Her body still slightly heavy from sleep, Emma snuggled closer in the sheets before the light went off in her still foggy mind. Her green eyes growing wide, the woman bolted upright in bed, her scarlet hair falling in a mess over her eyes as she stumbled out from under the blankets. The sun was burning brightly outside the draped windows, Emma covering her mouth in shock as she looked at her watch. It was already late morning. Her eyes darted to the hunter in a panic, and at first glance, he appeared to be sleeping. Emma was about to relax, but the longer she stood watching the injured man, the more a sickening feeling of dread washed over her. Quietly walking in pink socked feet, the woman approached the hunter's side, her fears becoming a reality. His skin was the same color as the pale, white sheets and covered in a sheen of sweat. His trembling hand clutched the blankets in a death grip, his breathing shallow, as if the very motion of it caused him unbearable pain.

Emma felt her heart drop to her feet, pure terror running through her veins as she darted around to the side on which the hunter's head lay listlessly, dropping to her knees.

"Yagari, hey…are you with me?" she softly said while trying to control her panic, her cool hands tenderly cupping the hunter's blanched face. She was brushing the black locks back when his blue eye fluttered open. The weary orb stared hazily for a moment before focusing on the worried woman, a weak smirk barely visible smirk playing on the hunter's lips.

"Mor…ning," he rasped feebly, Emma taken aback by his nonchalant demeanor despite the fact that his body was trembling from pain. The nurse felt herself exhaling in relief that the hunter wasn't slipping into unconsciousness, her fingers gently brushing his unruly hair back again before standing.

"Jesus you scared the hell out of me," she muttered quietly as she went and readied a dose of painkillers. "Honey, why on earth didn't you wake me up if you were in such pain," she asked with a sigh as she administered the drugs, her fingers lingering on the rough skin of the hunter's hand. Her smooth fingers slipped around the hunter's own, the nurse's thumb slowly stroking the tape that held the I.V. line in place. Tears pricked the edges of Emma's eyes as her free hand reached for the cloth from the bedside table.

"You're…shaking," the hunter wheezed, his hand squeezing hers as she passed the cloth along the side of his face.

"I thought you were…" she trailed off before trying to hide a sniff. "Getting bad…again," she said with a tired grin, her fingers instinctively clinging to his. The hunter's eye grew wide at the shaken woman sitting beside him, in awe that she was so upset about losing him when they were still such strangers. His thoughts were broken however by her lightly flinging the cloth at his shoulder. "Don't you ever scare me like that again," she said sternly, although her cheeks were bright red.

"I'm not…the scary one," he muttered while struggling to sit up, the medications finally beginning to numb the searing pain.

"Well you sure are scaring me now," she said shaking her head, their hands releasing. "Why on earth didn't you wake me up?" she asked running her hands back through her tangled hair. "You can't afford any more stress."

"You needed…your rest," he replied quietly, settling back against the pillows after propping himself up. "I wasn't going…to take that…from you too," he said heavily, his eye closing as he caught his breath.

Emma was about to protest when the depth of his words hit, her words caught in her throat. The woman sat in silence, the hunter's words ringing in her heart. The familiar sting of tears was again at her eyes as she contemplated the fact that this stranger had forced himself to endure crippling pain just so she could sleep.

"You haven't taken anything from me Yagari," the young woman said somberly, his blue eye opening as she wiped a stray tear from her face. He saw her open her mouth to say something else when he was hit with a violent attack of coughing. The hunter's chest burned and ached with each spasm, the jerking movements causing the burns to become livid. He honestly didn't know how much more of it he could take as it felt like hot glue was seeping through his lungs. Emma was already sitting beside him, one hand comfortingly stroking his back while the other held the cloth to his mouth as he began to cough up blood. His own hands were clutching at the bandages that hid the angry wounds on his torso. "There you go, get it out," he heard her soft voice say as the bitter taste of iron filled his mouth.

Finally, the exhausted hunter was left gasping for air as Emma held him up, her now blood stained hand depositing the crimson cloth in the bowl of water. The trembling man slowly lowered his head to rest on her shoulder, desperately seeking her comfort. Emma winced at the awful sound of his wheezing, her hand cradling his head against her.

"I'm not the one who's had anything taken from me," she whispered quietly. "You're the one who's suffering so much," she sniffed as she felt him shudder in her arms. "So don't think for one minute you are a burden to me. You deserve to be taken care of after all of the hell you are going through," she soothed while her fingers stroked his damp locks. "You don't owe me anything," the woman whispered to the broken man. To her surprise, she felt his arms weakly reach up, each of his hands tenderly grasping her arms…clinging to her. Her own arms threaded around him carefully, the skin of her fingers brushing against the scar on his shoulder, surprised to find it mirrored the one on the front. Emma felt herself shudder inwardly as she realized something must have gone straight through to cause such an injury.

The young nurse lost track of time as she sat holding the fragile hunter. A good twenty minutes had passed in a calm silence before she noticed his ragged breathing had slowed and become somewhat even. Even his grip on her arms had relaxed, one of his hands slowly sliding down her skin until it dropped quietly to the sheets. Emma felt her cheeks warm as she realized the poor hunter was asleep in her arms. It was no wonder since he was in pain throughout the night, and the mixture of the draining coughing episode and pain medications added to it as well. A soft grin crossed her face as she held him, the thought that the renowned rough and often hard vampire hunter was fast asleep in her arms seeming impossible. She remembered Allen telling her how reserved and uptight the hunter seemed, but the man that was resting in her embrace didn't seem to fit the bill. At least not now.

Trying her best not to disturb him, Emma maneuvered herself to where she could lay the hunter back against the pillows. She saw him wince as she gently moved him back, his eye opening tiredly as he finally came to rest against the pillows. Disappointed she had woken him up, Emma cupped the side of his scarred face while casting him a war smile.

"Go on back to sleep ok, you need it," she whispered softly. The weary hunter couldn't hold his eye open long enough for her to finish however. After watching him for a few minutes, Emma grabbed the remote and flopped down on her own bed. After flicking the T.V. on, she rolled over on her side facing the sleeping hunter. Her green eyes couldn't tear themselves way from him, her body already missing his warmth against hers. Shaking her head and forcing herself to rivet her eyes to the TV, the woman tried to force out certain thoughts that were invading her mind. But of course, by the time the program she was watching was rolling the credits, her eyes were already back on him.

* * *

The raven haired hunter found that he didn't feel quite so awful as he woke up, mentally thanking the morphine that was running through his veins. The wounds on his chest and abdomen still smarted as he sat up slowly, but he was thankful he was functional again. After rubbing the sleep from his eye and blinking, he found the red haired woman completely oblivious to him sitting on the end of her bed crossed legged. A warm tingle ran down his spine as he realized the last place he remembered being was in her arms, his cheeks warming as he came to the conclusion he must have fallen asleep. His embarrassment wasn't long lived however as he watched the professional woman sitting in yoga pants and a baggy t shirt eating from a cereal box in her lap…watching Spongebob.

"Aren't you a little…old for that?" he muttered as he watched her reach into the LuckyCharms box, her eyes still riveted to the screen.

The hunter had to stifle a chuckle as the woman jumped, the box nearly flying from her hands. Her mortified face quickly swung around to meet his, her cheeks blazing red.

"I…I uh," she stammered as she tried to shove the brightly colored cereal box behind her, but it only resulted in the hunter smirking at her even more.

"Hey, the kids…in my class…love it," he hoarsely chuckled as the embarrassed woman shut the TV off in a hurry.

"I wasn't aware that you were also a teacher," she mumbled, trying to get off the subject of her cartoon watching. The woman got up and retrieved a water bottle before she went to her bedside seat with her arms crossed, her face still scarlet.

"Wasn't my idea," the hunter grumbled while slowly shaking his head. "I think I actually…prefer babysitting vampires…over the crazy teenagers," he said as she handed him the water. The hunter was grateful to wash away the stale taste of iron that still lingered, and his throat felt like he had swallowed sand paper.

"What do you teach?" Emma asked curiously, wondering what in the world a vampire hunter would be doing teaching human kids.

"Ethics…of all things," the hunter muttered after swallowing the cool water. "Sometimes Cross…is a bigger idiot than…he lets on," the man sighed tiredly. "It wouldn't be…so God awful…if those insane girls would…leave me alone," he said while pinching the ridge of his nose, remembering the daily onslaught of personal questions that would stream from their teenage mouths.

"Yeah, it must be _sooo_ hard being attractive," Emma sighed sarcastically, a grin forming on her face as she stood.

The hunter felt the same warm tingle run down his back as he took in what she just said, but soon a devilish grin stretched across his face.

"So you admit it…you think I'm…attractive," he said with his usual cocky attitude, the woman whirling around in a hurry.

"That…that's not what…" she stuttered, the man's smirk only growing the more she babbled on.

"You also…called me honey," he pointed out as the woman's jaw seemed to drop to the floor.

"You know what, you sure are something else Yagari," the woman huffed, even her ears beginning to turn red as she turned on her heel to go and grab a stack of sheets. The woman returned with a devilish grin of her own, a cream colored stack of sheets in her hands. "Since you feel well enough to make smart comments at me, I think you'll be just fine while I change the sheets. You don't even have to get up," she smiled cunningly.

The hunter felt his breath catch in his chest as he realized what that meant. He knew he was dressed before the accident, but ever since he had woken up in the little hotel room, the only thing he knew for certain that he was wearing were the bandages that covered the burns.

"Come on, don't make that face," the nurse said as she went to pull the sheets that covered him, but his hand firmly clamped them at his sides. "Um," the confused nurse hummed as she stared at the man who was looking away from her.

"I…I'm not…um," he began to stammer himself, Emma honestly oblivious to what he was trying to ask.

"You're not…what?" she asked as she stood confused.

The hunter gripped the sheets in his hand as he huffed. "Look, I had clothes…before I got here…but now the only thing…I know I'm wearing…are these bandages," he muttered in irritation. Emma had to stifle a giggle herself as she put the hunter's statement and his embarrassed face together.

"No sweetie," she said while patting his shoulder, her voice full of vengeful satisfaction behind her smile. "You're not naked," she said bluntly with a bright smile as she set about pulling the old comforter from the bed, the hunter's face now burning brighter than Emma's. The nurse worked to replace the old sheets with the new ones, carefully shifting the injured man as she went.

"Now then, that should make you feel somewhat better," the nurse smiled as she smoothed out the comforter, the hunter's face still red. "Oh come on now, it wasn't that humiliating," she sighed as she piled the old sheets in the corner of the room, the hunter's expression somber. The nurse turned back around to find him still sitting in silence, his eye staring at the sheets. "What's the matter?" the woman asked quietly as she softened her face compassionately, walking over to the hunter's side. She noticed that ever since she had to move his left side, he had become deathly quiet.

"I really…can't feel much…in my leg…it's like it's…not even there," he breathed, his expression tight.

"The nerves were burned pretty badly," Emma said quietly. "But, I think your right leg should heal just fine," she said, trying to add some pep in her voice to raise the hunter's spirits.

"Yeah," he muttered under his breath, his eye still downcast.

Emma sighed and rubbed the back of her neck, missing the cocky attitude the hunter had before. She was desperately trying to think of a way to make the crushed hunter feel better, when it hit her. The nurse turned away from the man, her arms crossing as she felt her cheeks warm.

"Well, if its any consolation to you…I don't think the fact that your leg might not work correctly again makes you any less of the man you are," she said seriously, her cheeks burning. "And…you were right," she said as she turned around, her arms still crossed as her nail dug into her skin from nervousness. The hunter's blue eye stared up into her own in awe, her heart pounding in her chest. "I happen to think you are very attractive, regardless of burns or scars," she said feigning confidence when her hands were shaking. "So…there. I know my two cents worth doesn't count all that much but…" she began to say when the hunter stopped her mind sentence.

"Of course it counts," the raven haired man said quietly. Emma stared, the warm feeling in her stomach growing wild. "It's funny," the hunter began, smirking lightly to himself. "I've only known you for a few days…and yet…I trust you with my life," he said looking deeply into the woman's eyes. "Even if you drugged me…and love embarrassing me," he sniggered, watching the nurse's face burn. "I'm pretty lucky…I got you to be…stuck in a hotel room with," he smirked, Emma's eyes wide. "And please…call me Toga. I get called Yagari way too much by…too many people…I don't like," he sighed, his blue eye peeking at Emma from under his messy black hair.

The red head stood staring dumbly, her heart threatening to explode out of her chest. So many emotions were running through her body, she couldn't find the words to say. While still staring at the hunter blankly, she noticed his eye begin to roll back, his body going slack as a soft moan escaped him. Horror quickly replaced her nervousness as she rushed to his side, his head lolling to the side unresponsively. The panicked nurse was just leaning over him when she heard the sheets rustle, her eyes meeting the very much alive blue eye of the hunter, a devilish grin on his face as she stared at him in shock. The next thing Emma knows is that the hunter had raised himself up, his lips softly greeting hers. The surprised woman pulled back gently, her wide green eyes meeting with the single blue one that was watching for her response. Although her reason told her no, she couldn't ignore the aching in her chest. Placing her hands on each side of the hunter, Emma leaned in with a massive smile and kissed him back, her lips surprisingly hungry for him. They both knew they were crazy, but neither of them had much left from their previous lives. They were already taking chances, so why not take this one?

**Sorry if it was too soon...but I hate romantic strife lol And this is fanfiction so anything is fair game :) please please please review! Thanks for reading!**


	4. Unintended

**Alrighty Everyone, here is Chapter 4! And let me tell you, it's nothing but a fluff bucket :) Thank you so much LadyAmazon, thecoldforest, HeidiLancaster, and Wordgawk for the awesome reviews and encouragement! The title of this chapter and really the whole idea for the story itself comes from Muse's song "Unintended" so take a listen if you've never heard it :) Makes me cry lol Enjoy!**

She knew she would berate herself later for how foolish she was. Her brain would constantly nag her for believing something so childish and acting so rashly. He understood what he did was insane. His mind would certainly plague him with the overwhelming bitter facts of his harsh reality. He knew he was falling for a fragile creature that could instantly be ripped from him at any given moment just as he did years ago. She understood she was clinging to a man who was tied with an organization who could tear him from her life without even a moment's notice, a fact learned the hard way years before. And there was also the fact that the two them still barely knew each other, both dragging the baggage of previous horrors and tragedies. Reason told both of them it would never work, that their frantic reaching for each other was just the result of emotional weakness and would only result in more pain.

But right now, neither of them cared in the least bit. The gnawing sting of loneliness had plagued them for years, and now, for once, it had finally been broken.

Emma found the hunter's lips surprisingly soft as she sat down next to him. Part of her had expected him to be forward and on the rough side when it came to something like this, but the lips that were kissing hers were incredibly gentle, almost to the point of being shy. They moved slowly and tenderly, drawing her own toward them as she reached up and ran her slightly trembling fingers through his jet black locks. She heard him hum softly as he leaned into her touch, his own hand reaching up and gently stroking the side of her cool face. She noticed how his skin was rough against her own, hardened by years of physically demanding work. She didn't mind though. They were the hands of a man who had sacrificed so much for those he loved, and her heart raced as they caressed her cheek.

They stayed locked in each other's touch for few more long moments, neither of them wanting to break their moment of bliss frozen in time, for as soon as they pulled away, they knew reality would come crashing back onto them. Emma kissed the hunter deeply one last time before slightly pulling back, her hand still threaded through his wavy hair as she cupped the side of his scarred faced as she smiled at him with blushing cheeks. She couldn't get over how shy the rugged hunter's face appeared as his blue eye stared at her wide.

"I…I'm sorry," he began to say, his own cheeks growing crimson as the woman put a slim finger to his lips.

"Don't apologize," she said with her soft grin, her thumb stroking the soft skin of his temple. A warmth fluttered in her stomach as he took her hand in his own, his movements as if he were handling precious glass. "I feel like…I've known you for years," she said sheepishly, her fingers wrapping around his. "That was a pretty sneaky stunt you pulled there though," she giggled with warm cheeks.

"You were taking…too long…just staring at me," the hunter smirked before Emma felt him tighten around her hand, a grimace crossing his face as he sank back into the pillows. "I was kinda…expecting you…to punch me," he breathed while closing his eye, his skin paling a bit as the familiar stinging pain began to creep back up on him.

Emma smiled softly while brushing his bangs from his eye. "The only reason I would have smacked you is for making me think you were dying on me," she said lightly before sighing. "You sure can go through some morphine though," the nurse said as her grin faded slightly, knowing it would be dangerous to continually over dose with painkillers. "I can't keep up with your metabolism," she sighed scratching the back of her head.

"I'll try…to tell it…to slow down," the hunter said with a weak smirk. "I promise…I'm not an…addict," he chuckled lightly, the motion instantly causing the wounds to smart. The hunter pinched the bridge of his nose to try to stave off the pain, his eye shut tight.

"You have my permission to be an addict when you have injuries like those," Emma said compassionately, her hand gently squeezing his arm before she carefully stood up from her spot on the bed. The hunter opened his eye to find the nurse grabbing a solo cup from the dresser, a white plastic spoon sticking out of it as she sat down beside him again.

"I can't give you any drugs yet, but…I did save you some…if you want it," she said handing him the cup, a smirk crossing his face to find it full of cereal. "I hate milk in my cereal, so…I hope you don't mind," she said as her cheeks blushed yet again.

"I don't mind," he hoarsely said while stirring the sweet smelling flakes around with the spoon. "But…there seems to be…a severe lacking…of marshmallows," the hunter smirked at the blushing nurse from under his messy black hair.

"I only eat…the marshmallows," Emma muttered under her breath as her face lit up. Even her ears grew hot as she heard the hunter snigger beside her. "Since when do tough hunters like yourself care about the marshmallows anyway?" she asked while crossing her arms, her eyebrow raising as she watched the hunter take a bite.

"I think…you're being stereotypical…Ms. Richardson," he retorted after swallowing, the cocky grin on his pale face making the woman's heart pound. "I happen to like them," he stated nonchalantly as the nurse began to feel more and more childish. "I had to take care of two young boys…for quite some time…and many mornings were spent…with bowls of Luckycharms," he said quietly, Emma eyes widening as she realized one of them must have been the silver haired boy that was so attached to the man before her. She saw a new light in the hunter's eye as he smiled lightly. "Zero was like you…he would only eat the marshmallows," he said while shaking his head. "I would get so aggravated with him…I'd make him sit at the table…until he ate the cereal too," he chuckled tiredly. "He would stare me down…for the longest time," the hunter remembered, Emma listening intently, savoring the grin that spread across his face. "Eventually he would stalk up…to me…with his empty bowl, before…climbing in my lap and acting like…nothing happened," he finished, his breathing a bit strained as he caught his breath. Emma noticed his expression growing more somber. She could only guess his mind was on the silver haired boy who was out there risking his life.

"He sure looks up to you," Emma said quietly, once again remembering Zero's agonized and broken face.

"He's a better man…than I'll ever be," Yagari grinned heavily, Emma's chest aching for the two of them. She had never had children and was an only child, so she knew she couldn't even begin to understand the bond shared between the raven haired hunter and the silver haired teen.

"I'd say he had quiet an exemplary teacher behind him," Emma smiled at the injured man, wanting to know so much more about the hunter she was falling for, but knowing not to push her boundaries.

The hunter smiled lightly before returning to his usual smirk. "Are you this nice to all of your patients?" he asked a bit breathlessly, the creeping pain beginning to become more evident.

"Maybe, but I only love to embarrass one," she grinned as she stood to retrieve a fresh cloth from the bathroom, the hunter's cheeks warming.

"If I told you…that I'm not hungry…would you still tie me down and force this down my throat?" the hunter asked while setting the cup on the nightstand as Emma returned.

"I'll let you slide this time since you're feeling pretty crappy," she smirked as she passed the cool cloth down his cheek and neck. "How are you holding up?" she sighed, hating it when he got so pale from the tormenting pain.

"I could use…a really stiff drink," he uttered before shifting, wincing as his broken body moved. "Make that two," he chuckled feebly, the energy drained from his face.

"Sorry but not today," Emma smiled lightly while running her hand compassionately down the hunter's arm. Her fingers continued to stroke his warm skin as she desperately tried to think of something to take the edge off of the burning pain he was experiencing. She watched as he lay still and quiet, his eye closed as he tried to control his breathing so the wounds would not be disturbed. With a defeated sigh, the nurse quietly got up and retrieved the remote, clicking the TV on as she sat on her own bed. "Do you have any preferences?" Emma asked, noticing the hunter had not even moved. He shook his head weakly, his fingers clutching the sheets as he winced. A heavy weight settled in the young woman's chest as she aimlessly flipped through the channels, her eyes constantly flicking back to the miserable hunter. She was just about to give up her aimless channel surfing when by chance she happened to fall one of the film channels, and in her favor, it was a vampire movie. An idea slipped into the nurse's mind as she turned the volume up slightly and plopped onto her stomach, her arms folding beneath her chin. She remembered how Allen used to rant about how Hollywood always got it wrong when it came to vampires and vampire hunters, and so she could never watch any movie about them in peace. She could only hope that the top ranked hunter's pride was stronger than the pain his body was dealing him.

The room was silent except for the TV for a few long minutes, Emma wondering if her plan was going to work at all when she finally heard the hunter mutter, "The hell…you watching?"

The young woman tried to hide her smirk as she pretended not to be fazed. "Van Hellsing," she replied nonchalantly, finding it extremely difficult not to tear her eyes from the screen to see his expression.

"You know…this is total…crap…right?" his voice croaked, Emma forcing herself to suppress a giggle. The nurse sat up with a triumphant smile, her legs tucking beneath her as she turned find him glaring at the screen.

"Not really, I don't really know that much about vampires or you hunters," she grinned innocently, turning back to the screen before she gave herself away. The movie was at the scene where they had just entered Transylvania…and had an encounter with flying women vampires. Emma bit her bottom lip to keep from grinning so stupidly. "Have you had to deal with any flying harpy vampires?" she giggled quietly, catching him rolling his eye while shaking his head.

"Nope…because they don't…exist," he smirked while forcing himself to sit up. "Thank God," he breathed sarcastically.

Emma felt her worry ease as the hunter became more alive. "Well, this guy seems pretty good," she said feigning ignorance, knowing she would get a reaction from the renowned Yagari.

The sound of the hunter's sarcastic laughing brought a warmth to the nurse's cheeks. "Right…so missing your target…fifty times…is good?" he said, his hand gently holding the bandages that surrounded his torso.

"Well not everyone can be Toga Yagari," Emma said, exaggerating her voice playfully before laughing softly.

"Damn right," he chuckled softly, the familiar warm tingling buzzing in Emma's stomach as she watched his face light up somewhat.

"Although, the two of you kinda look alike," Emma pointed out with a sly grin, waiting for the hunter's response.

"I'll pretend…you didn't say that," his voice rasped as he smirked at the red head. Emma's plan worked as she listened to the veteran hunter gripe and complain about how stupid the movie was, his mind not even registering the pain anymore. It had been the better part of an hour when Emma heard the man laughing softly. "You might want…to wipe the…drool from your face," he sniggered as Emma twisted around, her bangs flying in her eyes as her cheeks flushed.

"What are you talking about?" she asked as she put one hand on her hip, the smug grin on the hunter's face making her cheeks burn.

"You're only watching this…to stare at him shirtless…you haven't blinked…for five minutes," he said with his usual cocky smirk, his raven locks partially obscuring his sharp blue eye.

Emma felt heat rising up her face as she stammered. "N…no…of course not," she babbled in embarrassment. Although she had to admit seeing that sly smile on the hunter's face was worth it, she couldn't help but feel her face burn as she crossed her arms in mock confidence. "And so what if I was," she retorted, tossing her red hair behind her shoulders. "It's no different from you staring at that woman's chest the whole time," Emma said with a devious grin, her satisfaction granted as she saw the shocked look on the speechless hunter's face. Now it was her turn to laugh as the hunter scowled, a light shade of crimson highlighting his cheeks. The young nurse got up from her seat and handed the remote to the non-too pleased man. "Here, I've tormented you long enough with crummy vampire movies, although I must say, it was pretty interesting to hear what you had to say about it," she smiled as he glared at her. The hunter's expression softened as he took it from her, settling back against the pillows with a grimace before proceeding to flip through the channels again.

"Just so you…know…I caught onto…your plan," Yagari smirked at the nurse as she sat down beside him, her vivid green eyes noticing how pale he had gotten despite keeping his mind occupied from the burns. "Must say…that was…pretty smart," he weakly croaked, his hand slowly sliding across the sheets to clasp Emma's own.

"But you're hurting pretty bad now huh?" she asked sympathetically, running her fingers over his taped skin.

"Feeling like…acid is…eating your skin away…isn't all that…bad," he tried to say sarcastically, but Emma could see that he was having a hard time as his breath hitched painfully between words, his hand squeezing hers tightly against his will.

"Does a shot of morphine sound nice to you?" Emma asked in her calm and soothing voice as she ran her fingers through his raven locks. The hunter leaned his head into her touch, nodding tiredly as his free hand clutched the sheets. The young nurse rose from her bedside seat, leaning over and kissing the miserable man on the cheek before going and readying the medications, the hunter grinning weakly behind her back as she worked.

* * *

The rest of the day went smoothly for the two. With the hunter's pain back under control, the two of them spent the afternoon switching between watching movies or talking about various matters in their life. Of course the day was not complete without Emma shattering every bit of the hunter's pride by spoon feeding him soup at regular intervals.

* * *

The half-moon was shining brightly, the soft hum of crickets chirping permeating through the cool night air as Emma peeked up at the night sky from the window. Her freshly washed hair dampened the old college T-shirt she was wearing as she dropped the heavy green curtains and turned toward the hunter. She couldn't help the warm feeling that swirled in her chest as her green eyes fell on the quietly sleeping man, his damaged body requiring more rest than ever. Emma stood watching his steady breathing and relaxed face, savoring the quiet serenity of the moment. She knew he was rough, that he was hard and often cold, and that he took lives for a living, but in that moment, he seemed like any other ordinary person like herself. And she was happy that he could finally have some peace as well. The young nurse locked the door quietly before shutting off the TV, her own eyelids beginning to grow heavy in the peaceful atmosphere. It seemed like every other minute had been filled with some form of stress.

Emma was just about to crawl into her own bed when she heard the sheets rustling softly. She turned to find the hunter shifting in his sleep, the woman biting her lip waiting for him to hiss in pain from the movement. But none ever came. The nurse relaxed as she walked to his side, a warm grin spreading across her face as she saw him half curled on his side, his shoulders lightly shivering. Small, pale hands took great care not to wake or hurt the injured hunter as they tenderly pulled the blankets up around his shoulders. The hunter instinctively burrowed deeper into their warmth as much as his body would allow, Emma's fingers brushing his wild locks from his scarred eye. While the discolored and marred skin was certainly painful for Emma to imagine, it didn't bother her in the least bit. She would have thought that someone as gruff as Yagari wouldn't even bother to cover it up, but she guessed that even under his raw exterior, was a man who couldn't stand the weight of so many questioning stares. Part of her wondered if the old wound was what Zero had been talking about before he left, but Emma didn't dare ask about it, at least not anytime soon. The red head smiled one last time at the sleeping hunter before turning and climbing into her bed, quietly flicking off the last of the lights. Her eyes quickly grew heavy to the sounds of his deep breathing and the hum of the darkness.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to rise as Emma's eyes flickered open, the warm hues of orange and pink seeping through the curtains. Remembering the events of yesterday morning, the woman was quick to hop out of bed to check the condition of the hunter. With a hand to her chest, Emma sighed in relief when she found him still sleeping soundly nestled in the blankets. She giggled quietly to herself when she saw his raven hair was splayed over his face, parts of it sticking out in different directions. She also saw that he had wriggled his shoulders free of the comforter, her chest tightening a bit as she saw he was already losing a little bit of weight. He was already slim to begin with, so Emma knew he couldn't afford to lose much. The nurse ran her hands through her hair in frustration. She really didn't know that terribly much about the care of burn victims, but she wasn't going to let the man suffer because of it. Quickly turning and padding to her side, she flung herself on her bed with her laptop. Because of her extensive medical training, she could access high level educational sites and understand the sophisticated jargon. She scoured everything she could, her green eyes soaking up the information intently. She had no idea how long she had been reading when she finally lifted her eyes from the screen. After rubbing feeling back into them, she turned her head to glance at the hunter, but nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw him quietly watching her, his signature smirk crossing his face as he caught sight of her reaction.

"Jesus, I didn't even know you were awake," she breathed while shutting her laptop, a smile crossing her face as she turned to face him.

"You looked like…you were busy," he croaked while working to sit up.

"I'm trying to figure out what in the world to feed you that won't make you sick and have enough calories to keep you from losing weight," she sighed while getting up.

"Steak is nice," the man said while leaning back against the pillows, his blue eye opening to catch Emma rolling her own.

"Nice try," she said while patting his shoulder, which shrugged beneath her touch.

"It was worth it," he said hoarsely as he watched her slip on her shoes and grab her sweater from the foot of her bed.

"I need to go make a quick run," Emma said after shaking out a few pills from various bottles and handing them to Yagari, who eyed them unhappily before swallowing them all at once. "Will you be alright?" she asked as she administered the usual pain meds, surprised he had slept for so long without them, her fingers gently squeezing his hand before she stood.

"Who knows…I might try…to escape," the hunter sniggered before coughing quietly, Emma in the middle of throwing her hair up in a ponytail.

"Well you wouldn't be the first to pull that," Emma laughed while retrieving two of the fruit flavored protein drinks. "But I'll have you know, I'll hunt you down day and night until I find you and then I'll just drag you back," she said sweetly while setting them before the smirking hunter. "I want these gone by the time I get back," she said tapping the tops of them before turning and gathering the keys.

"So you're scary…and bossy," Yagari grumbled under his breath as Emma opened the door, her red hair framing her face as she turned her head toward him.

"You don't know the half of it," she smiled impishly. "You're getting a bath when I get back," she called before shutting the door, the hunter nearly choking on the strawberry flavored drink as the color drained from his face.

Emma returned with her arms once again laden with white, plastic bags to find the hunter sulking, his cheeks still flushed a shade of crimson. She noticed he wouldn't even raise his blue eye to meet hers, but instead of being hurt, she found it insanely adorable as he sat there looking petrified. She was surprised to find two empty bottles on the bedside table, a sly smile crossing her face as she set the bags on the dresser.

"Come on now, don't look at me like that," Emma said turning to the blushing hunter.

"You really do…love tormenting me," the man muttered while glaring at the smiling nurse, who leaned back against the dresser.

"No, I was actually the "too nice" one in my intern group," Emma said remembering her friends from the hospital. "The real scary one was my friend Denise," she said while turning and sorting through the bags. "She would take one look at you and say, 'Boy, you nasty,'" the red head said in an exaggerated accent. "Of course then she would strip you down, clothes and dignity, and proceed to give you the most humiliating sponge bath of your life and if you protested in the least bit she would tell you to shut your mouth and deal with it," Emma said while pulling out a large plastic bowl and placing it on the scowling hunter's lap. "I on the other hand am not going to do that to you," Emma smiled warmly at the horrified hunter before taking two plastic pitchers to the bathroom, the sound of running water soon filling the room. Emma returned with the pitchers of warm water and a stack of towels, finally sitting next to the hunter with a black bottle of shampoo. The scowl on the man's face faded as a wry grin took it's place.

"You really must know me," he chuckled softly, Emma's stomach fluttering. "Either that, or you were spying on me at home…how else would you know the exact shampoo I use," he smirked at her lightly.

"Lucky guess I suppose," she replied with burning cheeks. "Now lean over so I don't get you soaking wet," she said while taking one of the pitchers in her hand. The hunter soon forgot his embarrassment as he felt the warm water begin to stream down his head, his hair becoming saturated. He felt Emma's nimble fingers gingerly threading through his thick locks as she continued to pour the soothing warm liquid. Soon his raven locks were completely drenched as he hung his head over the large bowl, the crisp scent of the shampoo hitting his nose as he felt her begin to work it through his hair. Tingling chills of pleasure ran down his spine as her nails softly caressed his scalp, her movements nearly putting him back to sleep. The young woman began to hum softly as her fingers slowly and rhythmically massaged the lather. The hunter felt a heat settle in his stomach as he felt her nails lightly glide down the back of his head onto the sensitive skin of the back of his neck. Her voice combined with her fingers running up and down his skin put the hunter in a trance, an involuntary shudder of pleasure running throughout his body. He heard her softly laugh before he felt another rush of warm water, the foamy suds drizzling in front of him as she rinsed the soap from his hair.

"Now, was that so horrible," Emma said softly while taking a towel and sitting beside him, gathering the hunter's dripping black locks, her free hand removing the bowl of sudsy water. The only reply she got was a groggy hum from the raven haired man as she massaged his damp locks with the sweet smelling fabric. "I'll take that as a no," she giggled as she finished drying off his wet hair, his still damp black locks shining under the light as his blue eye looked up at her. Her brain couldn't help but fixate on how incredibly handsome he looked with his damp locks falling messily over his face. Before she knew it, she felt his hands tenderly reach up and caress the sides of her face, softly bringing her closer to himself. A wild electricity surged through Emma's body as she felt his lips fondly embrace hers. Instead of wild lust, his passionate kiss was filled with heart wrenching longing, and Emma knew exactly how he felt. A shiver ran down her back as his roughened fingers trailed down the smooth skin of her neck toward her collarbone.

"Am I…crazy?" his damaged voice whispered, his lips just centimeters from her own.

"We both are," she breathed before running both of her hands through his wavy, dark locks, her hungry kiss eliciting a low moan from the hunter. His hands immediately did the same, Emma trembling as his fingers slowly entwined themselves in her hair.

The bond forming between the two grew even more as Emma tenderly washed the hunter's soot stained skin. Her dainty hands moved slowly down his shoulders toward his lean back with the warm cloth, the intimate motions and her soft humming voice confusing the hunter as to whether his body should slip into sleep or become physically excited. It had been so long since he had been touched so tenderly, and the young woman had been longing in her heart to be able to lavish her emotions on someone she loved. She couldn't stop herself from running her fingers soothingly up and down the warm skin of his back, her lips brushing against the back of his shoulder before she helped him to sit back, his cheeks still lightly blushing.

"Now, do you still say I love to torment you?" the red head asked with a grin as she handed him a brush.

"Yes," he answered with his own half grin as he ran the bristles though his damp hair. "Just in…a different way," he finished as he pushed his bangs from his eye, Emma's face turning rose colored as she looked at him. "Now you're friend however, sounds way…more frightening than you," he laughed softly as Emma shook her head.

"Yeah, Denise was probably the best out of all of us, but her bedside manner was severely lacking," Emma giggled before sighing softly.

"You miss them…don't you," she heard Yagari ask quietly.

The nurse slowly nodded her head, a heavy grin on her face. "Yeah…it was me, Denise, Eric, and Patrick. We all went through college and med school together and we ended up interning at the same hospital," she told him. "We were like…a family…before we all branched off," she said, feeling tears threaten at the back of her eyes. "Eric would always cheat off of me in rounds for answers, so I never had buy lunch since he always felt guilty," she laughed softly. "And Pat was always bothering me about how to get Denise to go out with him," Emma smirked. "They kept me going…when Allen passed away," Emma smiled sadly up at the hunter, a tear slowly sliding down her face.

"I understand," he said softly, his taped hand reaching up to her pale face, tenderly wiping away the falling crystalline drop. "If it wasn't for those two boys…and that moron Cross, I don't know if I would have gotten through it," he said heavily, his fingers still tracing her face. Emma took hold of his hand and held it close, thankful to have found someone who truly understood her complicated feelings.

After a while Emma got up and went about preparing breakfast, the hunter watching as she pulled out all different kinds of fruit.

"I read that vitamin C and other minerals are supposed to be helpful for the healing of burns," Emma said as she peeled an orange. "Plus, I figured you would get tired of soup alone very quickly," she smiled as she walked over and handed it to him.

"You guessed correctly," he replied as she grabbed the notepad from the table, her fingers clicking the pen to write down his last medications when the pen refused to write. Quickly flipping to the back pages to try to get the pen working again, Emma almost scribbled absent mindedly on the page before her eyes happened to catch what was adorning the plain, blue lined paper.

The nurse felt her jaw drop when her eyes feel on two gorgeous portraits of a Friesian horse and a Doberman. She was in awe of the intricate details that made up each one. The smooth muscles of the horse's neck seemed as if she could reach out and pet it's velvet fur, and the piercing eyes of the regal dog seemed to look right at her. The fact that they were etched on plain notebook paper made them even more remarkable.

"Did…did you…draw these?" the astonished woman asked the hunter wide eyed, the hunter looking up at her sheepishly in mid bite of an orange slice. "Oh my God they're amazing," she breathed as she sat beside him.

"I was bored," he said plainly after swallowing.

"You say it like it's nothing," she said in disbelief, her eyes unable to leave the page. "Does anyone know you can do this?" she asked the now slightly blushing man.

"Probably not, it's just something I can do…without having to practice much…didn't have much time for it," he shrugged. "I've never been stuck…in bed before," he rasped while rubbing the back of his neck.

"People would kill for this kind of talent," Emma breathed, her fingers lightly tracing the outline of the horse's majestic neck. "Are these yours?" she asked the hunter softly.

Her heart fluttered when she saw him grin warmly. "I guess you could call them childhood memories. I learned how…to ride on that horse and that dog followed me…everywhere," he laughed lightly. Emma smiled again before carefully closing the notepad.

"You really are an amazing person," the young woman said quietly, her cheeks burning as she said it. The hunter's own heart seemed to pound in his chest as he looked into her glistening green eyes that looked up at him from under her rich red bangs. The more he thought about it, the more he realized no one had ever really said anything like that to him before. That he was exceptional. Not for his skills as a hunter, nor for his looks, not because of the decisions he made. But just because he is who he is.

"I love you…Emma," the woman heard his deep voice softly say as she felt his fingers caress her face. Her eyes flicked up to his, her heart hammering in her chest as she realized what he had just said. His expression had all of his emotions written out plain for her to see. Fear. Longing. Hope. Insecurity. Passion. And love.

"I love you too…Toga," Emma found herself saying as tears freely rolled down her cheeks. "I love you too," she whispered, her voice cracking from her emotions as she ran her fingers through his hair. The smile on the hunter's face was enough to take her breath away as he caught her hand and kissed the skin of her knuckles tenderly. She didn't think anything could ruin this moment for her, that was, until her phone began to ring…

**Cliffhanger! Well I hope Y'all enjoyed :) Please please please review as I go and try not to die now from being sick as a dog...God this weather is insane and killing me slowly lol. Thanks!**


	5. Highs and Lows

**Took me a while to get this chapter out, sorry if it's kinda scattered. I sort of needed this one to fill in for everything else I want to do in the story lol. Thank you so so sooooo much LadyAmazon, HeidiLancaster and Wordgawk for the awesome reviews :) Enjoy!...although I'm really not too thrilled with this chapter *sigh***

"It's alright," the hunter said quietly as Emma sighed, wishing she could mentally shut the darn thing off as it rang the Scrubs theme song incessantly. She knew exactly who it was, and she had been dreading this moment since day one, but it wasn't like she could hide forever. She felt Toga squeeze her hand gently before releasing her, his unfazed smile encouraging her, although it just about killed the woman to tear herself away from the hunter right in the middle of such a wonderful moment. "I'm not going anywhere," he smirked as she wiped her tears with the back of her hand, a small smile crossing her face before she picked up her phone and swiped her finger across the screen, a cold sweat immediately pricking on her back as she put the phone to her ear.

"This is Emma," she said calmly, but she could already sense the tension from the other line.

"Emma, thank God," a male voice said breathlessly. "Are you ok? What happened? I tried calling and…you just left and…" he continued to frantically say before the woman cut him off.

"I'm fine Eric," she sighed, hating to hear her friend so upset, but not really wanting to deal with over reactive outbursts he was known to have. "I promise, I'm alright," she said, forcing herself to make her voice gentler.

"Wh…where are you? What's with the sudden disappearance, and then I get the news you're taking a leave of absence? Has something happened? You just…up and left without telling any of us," the voice on the other line said heavily, Emma's heart wrenching at his words. She really wasn't trying to hide anything from her friends, if anything she wanted their help, but she knew it was too risky. The woman knew she wouldn't do anything to put the hunter's life in danger, even if it now meant her friendships would be strained.

"Something came up…that I have to do," she said quietly, her mind picturing the confused and hurt look on Eric's face. "I can't tell you about it though. I'm doing this on my own," she said confidently, though she could hear the anxiety of her friend's breathing growing on the other line.

"What the hell Emma?" the broken voice said. "Wh…why…aren't we friends?" he breathed upset, his words like a hot knife to the nurse's heart.

"Of course we're friends," she breathed, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill.

"Then come back…please," the voice begged pathetically, cracking because of tears. "They're going to give your position to another intern if you don't," he breathed.

Emma felt herself smiling sadly. "I know," she said as her own voice cracked. "I knew that's what they would do."

"So why did you leave?!" Eric demanded, the acid in his voice causing Emma to flinch. Although she had her back to him, she knew the hunter saw her reaction. "What? What in God's name is so important to you that you'll leave behind the friends you've had for years? And what about everything you've trained for? Everything you slaved for? Are you just going to throw that away too?" his heated voice demanded, the woman's heart feeling as if it was bleeding.

"I'm doing exactly what I trained for…what I gave my life for," she answered him sternly. "If saving a life means the end of my job in that hospital…so be it," she said gravely.

The line was quiet for a few long seconds except for the sound of Eric's agitated breathing. "Well, what about us Emma?" he asked, his voice a frightening calm. "Who is so important to you now that you are just going to give everything up?" he asked, his voice quivering.

Emma sniffed before slowly turning to face the hunter, his blue eye filled with guilt as she walked over and sat beside him. "Someone very special," she breathed as her free hand brushed the hunter's black locks back, a sad smile on her face as her hand ran down his arm to clasp his hand. "It's not like I'll never see you all again," she told the man on the other line.

"Emma…no," Eric tried to protest, but the nurse couldn't stand anymore of it.

"I have to go now Eric, make it to the top like you always said you would, goodbye," she said as she hung up the phone, cutting off his last attempt to sway her. Emma stared at her lap for the longest time, trying desperately not to fall apart. The torn woman rested her head in her hands, her fingers running through her hair in anxiety when she felt the warm hand of the hunter rest on her shoulder. The red head lifted her tear stained face to the raven haired man, trying desperately to force a smile. The hunter only looked at her with concern however, his long fingers brushing away the many shining drops that fell down her pale face. The woman felt herself cracking as he cupped her face gently, her breath beginning to hitch as he continued to wipe the falling tears away.

"It's ok," the hunter said quietly, his arm wrapping around her and carefully pulling her toward him so that her head rested on his shoulder, the woman finally letting go as he felt her shoulders pitifully jerk while her warm tears began to trickle down his skin. His calloused hand cradled her head against his shoulder, his other arm wrapped around her as best he could. Even if he could no longer serve as a hunter, he knew he would always have his mismatched group behind him. He wasn't one to have many friends, preferring to be more of a loner. But he knew that the group of people Emma had left behind meant a great deal to her, and now here she was crushed. He wanted to say something to her to ease her pain as he held her, the way she had been able to do for him these past few days. But nothing was coming to mind. The hunter pulled her tighter as he squeezed his eye shut in frustration. He knew he wasn't any good at comforting people. Hell, he'd shot his own student in the shoulder for Christ sake because he couldn't handle seeing him as a vampire.

At that point, the hunter envied his silver haired student. Zero could be just as cold and closed off as he was, if not more so, but if that daughter of Cross's was ever upset, the boy could somehow make her tears disappear in no time at all. The raven haired hunter didn't feel he was so lucky. He had spent so many years lately putting up such a rough and hard front, that he had almost forgotten how to be soft. He had told himself over and over that showing compassion was a sign of weakness, but this woman in his arms had done nothing but show him love, and she was one of the strongest people he had ever met.

"I'm sorry…Emma," he said quietly after a few minutes, knowing that there wasn't anything else he could say to ease her pain. The now softly weeping woman immediately began to shake her head as she sat up from the hunter's embrace, her shaky hands wiping at her swollen eyes.

"No…don't apologize…it's not your fault," she squeaked through her cracking voice, a smile trying to fight its way to her face. "It's just…one of those things…you know?" she said tiredly, tears still seeping from her red rimmed eyes, but a small grin was spread across her lips. The hunter nodded understandingly as he brushed the trickling tears away from her blotchy face, her smile growing at his contact. "I um…I'm sorry for completely break…"she began to say sheepishly before she felt his finger gently rest against her lips. Her green eyes darted to see him softly smirking at her.

"If I can't apologize for…messing up your life, then you can't for crying because your life has drastically changed," he said quietly, the smug grin on his face bringing a blushing smile to the nurse's face.

"Touché Mr. Hunter," she sniffed, her fingers wrapping around his own. "Except you got one thing wrong," she said with a smirk of her own as she tapped him on the shoulder. "You didn't mess my life up," she said softly while running her fingers through his hair. "I would give up anything to be able to save your life," she sniffed quietly, her fingers coming to run through her bangs nervously. "Although, I'll be honest…I didn't want to be involved when Cross called me," she said shamefully. "At that point, I did think my life was ruined," she said with downcast eyes that threatened to spill again, remembering how she resented the whole ordeal in the first place. "But…then I saw you," Emma said with a tearful smile, her gaze falling on the wide eyed hunter. "I didn't even know you, and yet I was so afraid…that you would slip away any minute. God you were so sick," she breathed. "I'm so sorry…I even hesitated," she said pitifully, her voice hitching as her cheeks flushed with shame.

"Emma, you can't beat yourself up for that," she heard the hunter's deep voice say calmly but sternly as his hand threaded around hers. "Do you realize how much you gave up on a seconds notice?" he said while brushing her tear dampened bangs from her glistening eyes. "Not many people would do what you did for me," he said quietly, the woman looking into his deep blue eye. "In fact, I don't think I would have even done what you did," he said while again wiping the tears that fell from her soft eyes. He saw the nurse smile sadly and shake her head, her thumb stroking the skin of his hand lovingly.

"That right there is one of the reasons I'm already in love with you," she said with her slightly hoarse voice. The hunter looked at her confused when she reached up and lightly traced the edges of the bandages that covered his torso. "Toga, don't you realize you gave up everything…in a moment's notice…for a complete stranger? That's how you got in this mess," Emma said softly, the hunter looking at her surprised. "Don't sell yourself short," she said to him with a smile, a warm tingle running down his back as she ran her fingers down the skin of his neck, gliding across his shoulder.

Emma's own heart skipped a beat when he in turn reached out and gently cupped her chin, tilting her head ever so slightly so that her eyes focused on him. "Then don't do the same to yourself," he said seriously as his hand moved to stroke her now blushing cheek. Emma's cheeks burned madly as she leaned into his touch and nodded slowly, the small smile on the man's face causing a rather large one to form on her own lips. "Now then," the hunter smirked as he leaned back against the pillows. "First it was honey…now it's Mr. Hunter?" he said with his devious grin, a snigger escaping him as he watched the woman's face turn even redder. "I'm kind of starting to like these new names," he lazily grinned up at her from under his messy black locks.

That smile of his left the nurse speechless as she felt her ears begin to burn, and yet she couldn't get enough of it. "Well, I was going to let you feed yourself oatmeal this morning, but I might have changed my mind," she said with her own smirk, the hunter rolling his eye at her.

"I hate oatmeal," he said flatly as Emma got up, the nurse softly giggling at his unhappy scowl.

"You need to eat something with more sustenance to it to keep your strength, and right now you don't have a lot of choices," she sighed lightly while crossing her arms.

"Still doesn't change the fact that I hate it," he muttered while keeping his none too pleased look, although he couldn't sway the red head in the least. The woman only smiled at him sweetly with a smug grin of her own before she got up and proceeded to go about fixing it anyway. She heard him exhale rather loudly in irritation…or possibly defeat as she worked. She didn't mind his protesting, rather, she actually enjoyed seeing his personality coming out instead of seeing him in a drugged and sick stupor.

"You're still under my care and you will eat what I tell you to until you are well again," Emma said as she popped the bowl in the microwave, turning to face the hunter with crossed arms. "My threat still stands if you refuse," she said simply, her expression unfazed at the glare the hunter was throwing her. She expected him to hold his icy stare, but to her surprise a grin soon crawled across the hunter's lips as he chuckled quietly, his eye closing as he leaned back, his hand resting on the bandages around him while he winced quickly.

"I like a woman that will talk mean to me," he said while opening his eye to smirk at the surprised nurse, her cheeks growing red. "Even if you make me eat crap," he sighed while watching her turn and retrieve the bowl from the small black microwave. "And threaten me with inhumane force feeding…" he added as she handed him the warm bowl, her expression still smug. Emma had to admit he was pretty darn cute sitting there eyeing the apple scented food with such a depressed expression. The fact that she could bring the world's greatest vampire hunter to his knees with just a bowl of oatmeal was priceless to the nurse. In fact, she had forgotten the pain that was previously tearing her heart to shreds. All thanks to the unhappy scowl of a certain raven haired hunter who didn't want to eat.

The nurse couldn't help but lean over the tall man and kiss him sweetly; a soft, surprised gasp coming from his lips as her own meet them. "Thank you Toga," she said sweetly, her lips just hovering over his before she pulled away, the hunter left confused.

"For what?" he asked, his deep voice that was finally starting to recover causing Emma's heart to thud. The baffled and slightly suspicious look in his eye only added to Emma's grin.

"For hating oatmeal so much," she smiled warmly, the hunter looking at her as if she were crazy before he shook his head and began to force himself to eat the food he detested so much.

Over the next few days the relationship between the hunter and the nurse continued to grow. While he still struggled physically from pain and coughing, Emma was beginning to believe that maybe he wasn't as emotionally damaged as she had thought. He didn't ever really seem too down or depressed about his situation, but she noticed he didn't really talk about it at all. And he certainly didn't talk about the accident or the little girl. Emma wanted to believe that he had just put it behind him, but deep down…she was worried that he was still as fragile as cracked glass on the inside. It was at night as she was up late reading more medical articles that she feared he would be shattered.

The hunter had been quietly sleeping for the better part of an hour as Emma stared into the bright screen of her laptop. He couldn't really fight sleep for long after she gave him his nightly dose of pain meds, and so far he had been able to rest peacefully. Emma was just growing tired herself, a yawn escaping her as she shut the computer and stretched, when she saw the hunter jerk roughly to his side, his groan of agony hitting Emma's ears as she jumped from under her sheets. Panic pumped ice cold adrenaline through her veins as she heard him struggling to breathe, his breath coming in quick, strained pants. Before she could even attempt to wake him from his nightmare, the hunter shot up in bed, a strangled yelp of pain ripping from his chest as the fragile skin of the wounds on his torso was torn. Emma's hands barely caught him in time to keep him from falling.

"Toga, it's alright…you're ok," Emma desperately breathed, her hands coming to cup his sweating face as she sat down beside the gasping hunter. His blue eye quickly snapped up to hers wild and terrified. Emma didn't think she had seen that kind of terror in anyone's eyes before, and she had seen some pretty damaged individuals. The nurse watched as he desperately fought for air, each breath seeming to be ripped away. At first Emma was afraid his injured lungs were failing or that the damage from the smoke was causing an onset of asthma, but something in her gut told her otherwise. Deep down she felt that none of this was due to physical injury, and she had seen this before…in herself. With great care the young nurse gently rose from her spot, one hand still gently supporting the panting hunter as she climbed onto the bed behind him. Her legs clad in black jogging pants gently stretched around him as she tenderly pulled him to lean back against her chest, her hands holding his trembling arms.

"Toga, listen, I want you to breathe with me ok," the nurse said calmly while soothingly running her hands up and down his hitching shoulders. "You're alright, just breathe," she soothed while breathing deeply, pressing the trembling man against her in hopes that he would mimic her. She felt her heart shattering, however, when she felt him desperately try to control his erratic and panicked breathing to no avail, tears pricking at her eyes at the pitiful sounds of his gasping. "Come on baby, you've got to calm down," she said while stroking his damp locks back, her other arm looped around the top of his chest which was still heaving for air. The alarm on the battery operated monitor was going off as his heart frantically thundered in his chest, Emma quickly reaching over and shutting it off so the noise wouldn't add to the hunter's increasing stress. The woman knew from experience that the episode was something the hunter was going to have to ride out, although it didn't make watching his suffering any easier. Her gentle hands guided his head back against her shoulder, cradling his face against her cheek as she sank down onto the pillows with him. Her thumb stroked the flushed skin of his own cheek as she held him close, his eye shut tight as his body continued its involuntary spasms for air. "You're safe…everything's going to be alright," Emma whispered softly before running her fingers through his hair and kissing his temple, a tear falling from her eye as she felt him shivering against her.

Finally, after a few long and grueling minutes that seemed to have lasted hours, the hunter's breathing began to slowly calm down. Emma still held him protectively as his body began to relax, his hot breath on her skin as he weakly let his head fall in the crook of her neck, his lungs hungrily taking in the oxygen they desperately needed. "There you go, take it easy," Emma said softly while brushing his thick bangs from his eye. A relieved smile began to form on the woman's lips as he continued to relax little by little. After a while Emma could feel his chest rising and falling fairly evenly, although the man had yet to budge or utter a word. "Toga, are you alright?" she asked softly, his warm pants still hitting her neck as he caught his breath. Émma didn't get an answer as he lay in her arms, but she did feel something warm and moist begin to trickle down the skin of her neck. Emma could only imagine what sort of horrors the man in her embrace had just gone through; what awful memories had flashed before his only eye. She could tell the man was on the edge, torn between completely having a breakdown and maintaining his reputation as the cool and stoic hunter he was known to be. The red head sighed heavily before shifting slightly so she could gently brush the falling tear from the broken blue eye that looked up at her. "You know, you don't have to be the man of steel you think you have to be with me," she told him with a heavy grin. "You've experienced a hell that I can't even imagine, and it's not any of my business, but you can talk to me…if you want to," she told him warmly. She didn't really expect the hunter to open up to her about what had just happened, so the nurse found herself surprised when she heard his weary voice speak.

"I couldn't…save…her," he breathed while closing his eye painfully before taking a deep breath. "She was…afraid of me," his deep voice said pitifully. Emma's chest tightened when she realized he was talking about the girl from the fire, her green eyes growing misty while her fingers brushed through his hair soothingly. "She was so scared…I didn't have…enough time," he continued, his voice threatening to crack. "The floor was covered…in gasoline…but I didn't want to grab her…to scare her…but somehow, a flame got started and…it was so fast," his voice quivered. "I heard her scream…but the only thing I could see…was the smoke and the flames. And then…it felt like acid was thrown on me…I couldn't move or breathe…but…I didn't want to leave her," he told the nurse shattered. Tears were falling down Emma's face as she cradled the hunter's head against her. "I failed her…and…I thought…I was going to die," she felt him whisper against her skin, his shoulders shuddering.

"I'm so sorry," the nurse the nurse breathed into the man's dark locks, his tears continuing to trickle down her neck. She had no idea what to say to comfort him. She couldn't even imagine the torture he had to carry in his heart. "It's not your fault…none of this…is your fault," she softly said as she held him close, her heart breaking at the warmth of his blood on her arm that encircled him.

Emma sat with the hunter quietly in her arms for some time, allowing him time to recover before she carefully got up from behind him, a grimace crossing his features as she laid him back. Thankfully, he appeared to be coming back to his usual self as she heard him curse under his breath while trying to sit up.

"So…what…was that?" she heard his voice say sheepishly behind her while she gathered a new set of bandages. She turned to find his cheeks lightly dusted crimson, a smile growing on her face as she sat on the bed beside him.

"That," she began while gingerly cutting at the now bloody bandages, "was one of the worst panic attacks I have ever seen," she said with a sympathetic grin.

"Great," the hunter mumbled before wincing. "Now I'm crazy," he muttered while Emma stifled a giggle, her fingers beginning to remove the old bandage.

"You're not crazy," she sighed noticing him clenching the sheets, his face tight as the gauze pulled away to reveal the lightly bleeding skin. "You just might have some PTSD going on after all you've gone through," she sighed, her eyes surveying the injured wound.

"Goody, now I have a disorder," he grumbled sarcastically before hissing as Emma began to gently clean the wound.

"Sorry, sorry," she winced as she lightened her touch. The hunter couldn't help but grin softly, when he wasn't grimacing from the burning pain, at the woman who was intently focused on patching him up once again. "If you keep whining about 'being crazy' I'll make you eat oatmeal again," she quipped while tapping his shoulder before throwing away the gauze.

"So, you're just going to make me eat it in the morning," he retorted with a scowl, Emma grinning smugly while coating the wound with medication, which thankfully didn't hurt him too terribly.

"You have a point there," she laughed quietly. "Alright, you know the drill," the nurse said while helping the hunter to sit up, her cheeks still warming as his hands came to rest on her shoulders. "I told you not to scare me again," the nurse sighed lightly while wrapping the fresh around the hunter, his hands lightly squeezing her shoulders as the fabric made contact with the tender flesh. Yagari's single eye flicked up to find a tired half grin on the woman's face, her hands moving from his chest down toward his waist. "You don't listen very well," she sighed as she finished wrapping, her finger playfully poking the hunter on the forehead.

"Trust me, I didn't _try _to pull that," he muttered while looking away from her touch embarrassed, her soft giggle making the heat at the back of his neck grow stronger. The hunter shuddered at the memory of not even being able to control himself. He was always in control. But tonight, he couldn't even command his own breathing, much less his emotions, and that fact shook the raven haired man to the very core. The hunter was threatening to sink into yet another pool of despair when he felt a soft touch cupping his cheek.

"I know you didn't," Emma said understandingly before leaning in and kissing him softly, an ache in her chest for the worn hunter. "You're still the best ok, so give yourself a break," she told him softly as she pulled away, her forehead lightly resting against his. He heard her sniff as her fingers worked through his wavy locks to cradle the back of his head. "You survived a brutal attack on your life…don't you dare let them kill your spirit when you've come this far," she said sternly, an icy jolt running through his spine as her words hit him hard. "You're still Toga Yagari…don't let them win by thinking you are any less than you were before you got hurt because you're not," Emma told him, her green eyes flashing as the hunter looked at her in astonishment. "So…stop beating yourself up so much…ok?" the woman softly smiled while sniffing, her pale fingers once again brushing his unruly bangs from his eye.

The hunter's heart was thudding in his chest wildly as he tenderly threaded his arms around the small woman, his head nodding softly against her neck as he brought her closer. He was glad he could show her his feelings this way, not being too gifted in the department of talking about his emotions. He loved that he could be so soft around her and she still saw him for the man he was. He missed having someone so close, and he wouldn't trade it for anything.

"Well good," Emma sniffed lightly while stroking his back. "I didn't want to have to resort to smacking some sense into you," she sighed, her own heart racing as she felt his lips pull into a smirk against her skin as he chuckled softly against her.

"So you were gonna kick me when I'm down huh?" his deep voice said as he sat up, Emma sighing relieved inwardly when she saw his usual slick smirk. "That's no way for a lady to behave," he said sarcastically while slowly easing himself back down against the pillows.

"Yeah, you're ok now," the red head sighed while shaking her head and getting up. "And now you can go back to sleep," she mumbled tiredly while opening a pill a bottle on the dresser.

"Well shoot, I'm up now," she heard him mutter behind her as she turned, a sly grin on his face as she walked over and held out the blue tablet.

"You won't be after taking this so go on and take it," she smirked right back at him. Yagari's blue eye glared at her suspiciously, his smirk fading into a scowl.

"What is that?" he asked bluntly, his eye shifting up to hers expectantly.

"It'll help you sleep…just take it," she sighed.

"What is it?" the hunter asked again flatly, his expression unchanged.

Emma was thoroughly glad the man felt better, but she had underestimated Cross when he said the man was stubborn. "Valium. It's Valium," she got out tiredly, hoping to have avoided telling him. She felt that hope shattering though as the hunter regarded the pill in her hand with a disgusted look.

"I don't think so," he mumbled while shifting his gaze back to her.

"Come on Toga, it's just to get you through the night…" Emma was practically begging him, exhaustion creeping up on her body.

"I don't need it," the hunter grumbled, but Emma could see a faint blush running across his cheeks.

"You have a real pride problem, you know that?" the nurse exhaled wearily while sinking onto the bed next to him, a tired grin creeping across her lips.

"And you have a drugging me problem," the hunter smirked while his fingers idly toyed with the clear tube that was taped to his hand. "A shot of whisky would work just as good," Yagari said before wincing, Emma shaking her head and rolling her eyes.

"Nice try again," she said with a sigh while patting his shoulder. "I'm glad to see you've recovered your sarcasm so quickly," she laughed softly while coming to sit beside him, her hand still outstretched with the pill.

"Oh no, I'm dead serious," the hunter told her while still glaring at her hand, his own coming to rest on the new bandages as the wound beneath began to smart. "That stuff," the unhappy man said while nodding toward her hand, "is for loonies like Cross," he finished while glancing up at her from beneath his messy bangs.

Emma exhaled heavily while lowering her hand, her fingers rubbing her temples in exhaustion. She admitted to herself that handsome face of his was doing a good job at trying to sway her, and she really didn't want to upset the hunter…but darn it if he wasn't testing her patience. "Ok Toga…" the woman said as a tired smirk crawled across her lips. "Seeing as you are still very much injured and weak…and under my care… I'm going to give you an ultimatum," she said as a devious grin spread across her face, the hunter unknowingly shrinking back against the pillows as she patted the top of his uninjured thigh. The nurse felt a tingle of satisfaction as she caught sight of the wary look the hunter was giving her. "Either you take this pill the easy way…right now…or I will load a syringe with this stuff and I will stick you somewhere you really don't want me going around with sharp objects," Emma finished sweetly, her hand re-extending toward the horrified man. "How's that for talking mean?"

"Too damn good," Yagari grumbled under his breath while reluctantly taking the blue tablet from her hand and swallowing quickly. After sulking for a few seconds, Emma saw the familiar smirk slowly returning to his scarred face. "I see why you are so good at your job though," he chuckled softly, but the motion caused the tender flesh to sting with pain. "Ow," he said through gritted teeth, his fingers running through his hair in frustration.

"This is why you need to get some rest," Emma said softly while standing and gently gathering the sheets, carefully pulling them up to the hunter's chest, his blue eye opening to look at her tiredly. "You're a lot more exhausted than you realize, and now you can sleep without worrying about interruption," she smiled at him while smoothing back his bangs, his eyelid beginning to droop against his will.

"Ok, you win," the raven haired man muttered sleepily, a groggy grin on his face as he slowly blinked up at the red head. "Thanks…for taking care of me," he said softly while grasping her hand, his long fingers stroking her soft skin. Emma felt her cheeks brighten as she smiled down at the hunter. "You know, being in your arms was pretty nice…we should do it again sometime, without me having a spaz attack of course," he smiled weakly as the medication began to make him drowsy.

Emma ran her free hand nervously through her bangs as a bashful smile crossed her face, her stomach fluttering as she tightened her fingers around his. "Yeah, we should," she said while heat radiated throughout her body. It only worsened as the hunter began to chuckle softly again, though he was careful not to move too much. "What?" the nurse asked as he shook his head against the soft pillows.

"You look like those Day Class girls when they come to my desk to ask me something, all nervous and blushing," he grinned slyly, Emma's ears feeling as if they were going to burn up.

"Go to sleep Toga," Emma said with a scoff while quickly bending down to kiss the smirking hunter on the cheek while she tried to hide one herself.

"Yes ma'am," the nurse heard him say as she turned and headed back to her own bed, her heart thundering in her ears. It wasn't very long after she was curled up in her sheets that she heard the soft and steady rhythm of the sleeping hunter's breathing. She had to smile despite the events of the night, being that he had fought her so hard not to take that stupid pill and now he was resting soundly. "Stubborn," the woman whispered quietly to herself before turning over and closing her own eyes, missing the warmth of being so close to him. Sleep seemed far away for the red head as her mind continued to replay everything that had just happened. Emma really did hate it for the hunter that he was stuck in bed with nothing to do…not to mention the room didn't exactly feel like home. She wanted to do something for the worn hunter... anything to make him more comfortable…and that's when an idea popped into her head. Finally, Emma snuggled against her pillow with a grin on her lips…hoping her plan would work.

**So...I hope it wasn't too horrible lol. Thanks for reading and hopefully the next chapter will be out soon...or not since I have a 16pg paper due lol. Please review please!**


	6. A Piece of Home

**Holy geeze it's been forever. So after a 16 page essay, a music composition project, and a plethora of other lovely college life work...I finally got another chapter out :0) Thank you to everyone who reviewed! **

After seeing what time it was and closing her teal-themed laptop, the red head decided to go ahead and shower before the start of the day. As rapidly as she was growing closer to the raven haired man, she still preferred to shower either extremely late or very early while he was sleeping. Although she didn't show it, the woman didn't have an abundance of self esteem and she wasn't entirely a fan of her own body. She knew it was dumb since he didn't see her anyway, but for the sake of her anxious mind, Emma proceeded to get up. After throwing her legs over the side of the bed, her green eyes stopped for a moment to glance at the sleeping hunter. She was glad the stubborn Yagari had finally given in and taken the medication she offered him…well…forced him to take. She didn't think he had ever rested so peacefully since the start of the whole tragedy. He didn't even flinch if he moved in his sleep, which usually woke him up at least once every hour or two. His face was turned away from her as she quietly stood, his jet black locks a mess as usual, which brought a quick grin to the woman's face as she gathered her clothes for the day and padded into the bathroom.

After turning the warm water on and shedding her rumpled tshirt and pj bottoms, Emma once again stared unhappily at her reflection in the quickly fogging mirror. Her scarlet hair fell around her ivory shoulders, highlighting her porcelain skin under the lights, but her emerald eyes were far from admiring. She knew she was slender and she tried to go to the gym or go for a jog when she could, but the huge discolored oval shaped mark right in the dead center of her stomach always made her cringe. Her cream colored skin didn't do her any favors as the bruised and puckered looking scar stuck out like a sore thumb. Emma stepped into the warm current and began to lather her long hair in her favorite jasmine scented shampoo, her mind thinking about the hunter and his own scars. Emma sighed as the suds ran down her face, knowing that compared to his, that mark that stared up at her was really nothing. Still, the marks that adorned Toga Yagari's lithe body only added to his mysterious appeal. To Emma, she was just a pale, pasty woman with an ugly and strange looking blemish that stood out.

The said red head finished showering and was pulling on her dark jeans when she made an embarrassing discovery. She had forgotten her top on the edge of her bed, and so was only left in her red sports bra. Cursing quietly under breath and letting her damp hair fall behind her shoulders, the woman cracked the door open, cool air hitting her face as she peeked out. The sun was just beginning to dimly glow through the windows, the hunter still asleep on his back. Stealing herself, the nurse quietly slid out from behind the door and swiftly padded over to where her black tank top lay on her bed.

"You're not very sneaky," a deep and thick voice broke the silence just as Emma's hand fisted around the black fabric, causing her to jump. Her petrified eyes darted up to see a still groggy but smirking Yagari looking up at her from the pillows. Her hands instinctively flew to wrap around her middle, although she did a bad job at trying to play it cool.

"I…you …I thought," she stammered in a hurry, froze in place. She still held her tank top to her middle with shaking hands.

"Your phone decided…to wake the neighborhood," the hunter muttered while stiffly raising himself up.

Emma mentally kicked herself for not turning the alarm off, her cheeks growing even brighter. "I'm so sorry," she breathed in a hurry, still riveted in place.

"Hell, I wake you up…enough of the time," the hunter sighed while trying to find a comfortable position without disturbing his new wounds. "Just be glad I couldn't move, it might not have survived long," he smirked, his blue eye peeking out from beneath his wavy black hair. The red head could only stare dumbly as the hunter gave up and sank back into the pillows. "Emma, I already saw so you don't have to hide it," he said softly with his eye closed. The woman's eye grew wide as the hunter opened his own and grinned tiredly at the embarrassed woman. "You're looking at the embodiment…of disfiguring scars, so don't feel you have to hide anything" he told her quietly, the woman's arms relaxing as she felt the weight of his words. Suddenly the nurse felt ashamed for being so worried about her one blemish that could easily be hidden when the man she was growing to love was nearly covered in them. With a sigh, the red head finally dropped her arms from around her waist, her hand nervously reaching up and brushing back her still dripping hair.

"Ok, ok…you're right," she exhaled while pulling the tank top over her head. The nurse was about to smile as she straightened the wrinkled fabric, when she looked up and saw the hunter smirking more deviously than usual. "What?" she asked bluntly while crossing her arms.

"I kinda like waking up to a half dressed woman," he said casually while folding his hands over his chest, the cocky glint in his eye only growing as Emma's face lit up.

"Is that you or the drugs talking to me right now?" she grumbled while rolling her eyes and shaking her head.

"I'm pretty sure it's me," he replied coolly while shrugging his shoulders, quickly regretting it as he winced.

Emma smiled lightly as she dropped her arms and her glare, coming to sit beside the tired hunter.

"You sure are cocky," she said softly, running her fingers through the once again miserable Yagari's unruly hair. "But you have that right huh?" she smiled while taking his hand in hers, bringing his long fingers up to her lips and kissing them softly.

The hunter smirked weakly as he lay looking at the young nurse. "Emma, you're going to make me soft like that bonehead Cross," he sighed, the said woman's lips curling into a smile against his skin.

"Is that such a bad thing?" she responded while gently replacing his taped arm to the sheets.

"Very much so," he muttered before struggling to raise himself up for a second time, a grunt of pain escaping him as Emma attempted to help, but the man had already beaten her. "Damn," he hissed while finally leaning back against the headboard, a grimace lacing his stubbled features.

"You know, if you didn't move around so much you would heal faster," Emma sighed shaking her head. Yagari could only retort with a glare however, since he really didn't feel like wasting any more energy speaking right at the moment. "You can throw that look at me all day long Toga, but it's not going to scare me," the red head grinned cat like.

The hunter's scowl began to fade to a faint grin of his own. "I should have known," he mumbled while carefully rolling his shoulders back, the joints clicking quietly under his skin. The two sat in a peaceful silence for a few moments, before Emma felt the hunter's rough fingers ghost against her hand. "That mark," he began softly, his blue eye fixed on the pale skin of her hand, "It wasn't…one of them was it?" he asked cautiously, his gaze meeting her own.

"Them?" Emma quietly said in confusion before it dawned on her. The nurse grinned, her hand nervously coming to brush her bangs from her eyes as she laughed softly. "Oh no, quite the opposite," she said with a smile, the hunter's confused face only making her cheeks flush more. "I was still working in the emergency room when they brought in some lit up bum from the streets," she exhaled, thinking back to the uneventful day. "He was maybe in his early twenties, but he was coming off of some kind of overdose on some pretty nasty drugs…we had three cops in there trying to hold him down," she said shaking her head. "The guy's brain was totally fried. He was screaming and kicking and dog cussing us while also succeeding at ripping out any catheter we spent twenty minutes trying to get in his arm in the first place," she told the wide eyed hunter. "I remember him screaming at me 'Get your hands off me…you little bitch…I'll tear your throat out'" the woman said quietly, her expression growing more somber. "The nut job finally got an arm free from one of the cops and tried to pull the I.V. stand down…which would have broken his nose…and for some stupid reason…I felt the need to reach over him and try to stop it," Emma said with a cynical grin. "I got repaid with him deciding to try to take a chunk out of me like a raid dog," she laughed darkly. "I screamed…he screamed…and then I broke his nose for him before passing out cold into Denise," she said while flexing her right hand, the memory of the impact always fresh on her knuckles. "And people think being a nurse is just so much fun," Emma finished quietly with a sardonic grin, her pale fingers idly tracing those of the hunter. "How's that for a scar story Mr. Hunter?" she asked, her green eyes brightening again as she flipped her damp bangs from her face, leaning back on her arms beside Yagari.

"Hell, that beats the majority of the ones I've heard," the hunter said while shaking his head weakly, his hand reaching across to pat Emma's as he chuckled lightly. "The fact that you punched the guy's lights out makes you all that more appealing," he said with his sly smirk, Emma's cheeks turning beet red as she laughed nervously. Without realizing it the hunter felt his lips curling into a soft smile, the woman's blushing cheeks and quiet laugh causing a warmth to fill his chest. A quick and fleeting thought crossed the raven haired man's mind as he reached his still shaky arm up to gently cup the red head's cheek. As the warmth of her soft skin met his calloused fingers and her bright green eyes flicked to his in an insanely tempting nervousness, Yagari had to wonder if Cross had the right idea. It's true that he thrived on living the life of being the top ranked vampire hunter, he was practically designed for it. But he was getting older…and sometimes…after the adrenaline had long worn away and he was left alone in his too quiet bedroom in the early hours of the morning…even the great Toga Yagari would find himself pitifully lonely. Truth be told, the man missed the gentle touch of a woman he loved deeply. And now here he was, granted his body was nearly ruined and everyday was a struggle just to stay sane from the pain along with the knowledge his best friend and former students were risking their lives, but the hunter felt that he was finally beginning to feel some semblance of true happiness again.

"Toga…are you ok?" Emma's soft and concerned voice broke him of his thoughts. His blue eye blinked quickly to see her looking at him worriedly as she rested her head against his still outstretched hand.

"Yeah" he said quietly while stroking the side of her face, his relaxed grin and touch sending a tingle down her back.

"Um…Toga…I wanted to ask you something," Emma said as her nervousness began to grow again. Of course the hunter didn't miss her state of anxiety.

"Emma, you don't even stop to blush when you feel the need to give me shots in a place I got tired of those girl students staring at, so what is it that has you so worried now?" the hunter smirked as the nurse's cheeks glowed.

"You certainly have a way with words you know that?" she rolled her eyes.

"It's a gift," he replied casually before the nurse inhaled deeply.

"I was just thinking…you kinda just got stuck here and well…I was wondering if…there was anything I could get you…from home…if you wanted me to," she finished, her fingers twisting a section of the sheets tightly. "If the Association thinks…you're dead," she said as a shudder ran through her body. "Then…they wouldn't have a reason to go there," she said quietly, her eyes riveted to the sheets. The long period of silence that ensued nearly suffocated her, but it wasn't long before the soft exhale of the hunter broke it.

"Even though I really don't believe it's one hundred percent safe…it's not like I could do anything if they found us here," he said gravely, Emma daring to look up as he narrowed his eye while looking down. "There is something there…that I want you to have with you at all times…because I can't protect you," he said heavily as his hand reached out and grasped hers as she stared at him. The hunter then grinned somberly. "I just didn't know how to ask you…but you did it for me," he said quietly, Emma's hand tightening around his while being mindful of the I.V. line that was still delivering lifesaving fluids the man's body so desperately needed.

The nurse had a pretty good idea about what Yagari was referring to, but she still wanted this to be about him and lifting his spirits, not crushing them. "I understand," she told him with a compassionate smile. "But come on, this is about what you want…besides booze and things like that," she giggled lightly while patting his shoulder.

"Shoot, I got my hopes up," he chuckled softly before again having his breath hitch, his thumb flying between his teeth as he fought back the stream of curse words that threatened to come out.

"Come on, you need to lie down and get some rest," Emma said gently, her hands nimbly maneuvering to help the hunter ease back down onto the bed.

"All I do is sleep," the now grumpy Yagari mumbled. "I just woke up," he sighed in irritation.

"Then I suggest you make good friends with the T.V. because the more you move the longer you will be stuck on your back," Emma said while arranging the pillows behind him so that he was still slightly propped up since the hunter had a hard time breathing while flat. "Your wounds are very fragile while they're trying to heal," she finished while pulling the sheets up to his chest. The disgruntled hunter exhaled loudly before she handed him the remote, which he took with a scowl. "You'll survive, I promise," she said with a grin, leaning down to kiss him softly, his prickly stubble tickling her smooth skin as he weakly attempted to kiss her back. The hunter felt a heat rush to his cheeks as Emma softly giggled against his lips.

"What is your problem?" the man muttered while trying to seem unfazed, his deep voice still scratchy.

"You're prickly," she grinned, her damp hair falling against his skin.

"Sorry for being a man," he quipped while settling back down against the pillows.

"I'm not complaining," the red head's warm breath against Yagari's lips sent a wave of heat throughout his body before they kissed him again. Her lips pressed against his forcefully, her own heart thundering in her chest as she hungrily searched his mouth. Emma felt her lips curl into a triumphant grin when she heard him softly moan against her. "Now then, that should keep your mind busy for a little while hum?" the nurse said with a feline grin as she pulled away and headed for the bathroom, the blushing hunter left in a surprised daze.

"I'm adding cruel to your list," she heard his hoarse voice call out before she switched on the hair dryer, which thankfully hid the sounds of her laughter.

* * *

A certain panic gnawed at Emma's stomach as she drove down the quiet road the neatly written directions in black ink indicated, the hunter's elegant handwriting no surprise to the nurse after she saw his capabilities with a pen. Although he assured her he was fine, she still worried about him being alone, even if it was for only an hour or so.

"Are you sure you're ok?" she remembered asking him before she headed out the door, her white jacket halfway up her shoulders.

"I have large volumes of morphine running through my veins right now…I think I'm doing pretty good," he had said a bit slurred as he grinned lazily up at her from his makeshift hospital bed.

The drive wasn't too terribly long before she turned down a small dirt road, the ornate tops of the Cross Academy school buildings not far off in the distance. She remembered how the hunter told her Kaien had begged him to come and live near the school for the sake of Zero, and not really having much of a place to call his own and the fact that he worried for the wellbeing of his student, he didn't protest much. "Now being an ethics teacher…that was a different story," he had chuckled softly as he penned down the directions on the notebook paper. The little wood house that came into the nurse's view seemed to fit the hunter perfectly. It was neat, but nothing fancy. It wasn't far from the dwellings of his friend and student, but he had his privacy. And of course…there was the shiny black Silverado parked in the front. Emma was well aware of the special bond men had with their trucks…Allen had nearly treated his like a prized dog. Curiosity got the best of her as she parked and stepped out of her own Chevy Malibu, quickly walking over and peeking inside. A tie and jacket were thrown into the passenger seat, a few text books and a briefcase sitting in the back leather seats, but otherwise the inside was immaculate. Remembering the hunter's instructions, the red head continued up the gravel drive to the door, which the hunter had informed her was still unlocked since he never really bothered locking it anyway. '

Emma wasn't exactly sure what she expected Yagari's home to be like on the inside, but the crisp and slightly smoky scent that hit her nose was the same as the man's skin; nothing less than masculine. The woman found herself surprised at how empty the house seemed, the rustic scent and the occasional paper or glass left on his counter the only indications of an inhabitant. It wasn't long before she found the culprit of the smoky odor as her eyes fell on an ash tray that was on a table beside a leather recliner, a half-finished cigarette sitting beside the carton. The nurse wasn't worried however, since the hunter hadn't even hinted at wanting one, which was no surprise since smoke itself had nearly taken his life. Moving along through his living room she entered a hallway and soon she was at the half open door of his own room.

"Sorry, it's kind of a mess," he had said while scratching the back of his head as Emma sat beside him. "Not really used to having visitors or anything…it's more of just a place to sleep," he had said, Emma frowning slightly at his words. The hunter's words were right as she pushed open the door and stepped inside. The sheets of his bed were nearly falling over one side, a pillow on the floor beside a pile of clothes he had apparently shed before going to bed. She also found a towel adorning the hard wood floor half way between his room and the bathroom, and her cheeks flushed red as she quickly stopped her mind from running away with itself. She had strict instructions from Toga anyway that she had to attend to. The woman made her way to the night stand beside the hunter's rumpled bed, slowly pulling open the drawer. After hesitantly searching through the piles of papers and other assorted things, she found the object she had been sent for.

"Do you know how to shoot?" he had asked her seriously after explaining to her where the gun was.

"I'm not too wonderful, but I at least know how to work one," she had told him. "Being my father's only child and a daughter at that, he said I should know how to defend myself…so he taught me to shoot," she said with a smile.

"Your father is a smart man," Yagari had replied with a smug grin, but then his expression went serious again. "You're doing so much for me…I at least want you to be safe," he had finished before squeezing her hand.

Emma felt the weight of the pistol in her hand. The rich dark wood of the Colt 45 gleamed along with the silver trim, making it a beautiful, yet still deadly weapon. She knew the gun was loaded, for the hunter had told her so, so she quickly checked to make sure the safety was still in place. With his wish fulfilled, Emma placed the gun along with a duffel bag she had brought on his bed before walking over to his dresser. She still felt strange going through his things without him there, even if he had assured it was fine. Besides, it was beginning to get colder outside, and the hunter didn't really have much in the department of clothes. Emma just hoped he had something comfortable to wear that wouldn't be too restrictive with the burns. Thankfully she was able to locate a few larger T-shirts without having to search for too long along with some dark blue flannel pajama pants, although she wasn't sure how long it would be before he could actually wear them. Emma quickly packed the duffel with the few articles of clothing she deemed wearable for injured hunter, since a quick glance through his open closet door led her to believe his usual wardrobe consisted of jeans or slacks and a collared button up shirt, both of which were not friendly to fragile skin. Her cheeks warmed however as she imagined the lean hunter in his dark jeans and lazily done up shirt, but her smile faded as she realized it would more than likely be quite a while before he could wear anything that wasn't at least two sizes too big.

The red head placed a hunter green blanket that was piled at the foot of the bed in the bag before zipping it up, about to pick the ornate weapon back up before leaving when, out of girlish curiosity, she instead lifted the lone pillow from the bed. A tingle snaked its way down Emma's spine as she pulled the soft object to her, an intoxicating mix of crisp shampoo, the faint remnants of cigarette smoke, and a scent she could only describe as all his own filled her nose as she buried her face against the fabric. She wondered if this was what it was like sleeping next to the raven haired man. While she had been close to him just last night, it was different. He was terrified and covered in a chilling sweat that only sheer fear itself could produce. Different medications were running through his veins, and of course, she didn't know how long he would have to scrub his skin to get the acrid scent of the burning house off of him. Suddenly aching to be near him again, Emma replaced the pillow on his bed before slinging the bag over her shoulder, her hand taking up the gun before leaving the room.

The red head became painfully aware of how little time the man spent in his own home as her search only produced a few Robert Duvall and Clint Eastwood dvds. A quick peek inside the bare refrigerator, which only consisted of the bare makings of sandwiches and a half empty twelve pack, prompted the nurse to hope the hunter had been receiving his nutrients elsewhere. After finally concluding there wasn't anything left for her to do, and taking note of how long she had been gone, the red head stepped back into the cool, crisp air, another smirk gracing her pale face as she passed by the jet black truck once again.

* * *

With the amount of morphine she had given Yagari before leaving, Emma was really expecting him to be asleep, but of course she was proven wrong. As she opened the door, her eyes fell on the said man sitting up in bed slightly leaning forward, his right leg slightly bent with his right elbow hanging off of it lazily as his single eye flicked up from the TV screen to meet her.

"What part of stop moving so much do you not understand," she sighed as she pushed the door closed with her foot.

"I haven't moved for the better part of an hour, thank you," he retorted, but Emma noticed he didn't budge at all.

"Uh huh, that's not really the point I was making," she went on as she set the bag down next to his bed. The nurse stood watching him, his blue eye staring at her as a smirk began to play on her face, her fist coming to rest on her hip as she leaned against the end of the bed.

"What?" he asked bluntly with a scowl.

"You're stuck aren't you?" the red head smirked as the hunter scowled, his wavy hair beginning to fall into his eye.

"Maybe I'm just sitting here," he mumbled, but Emma could see his body was quickly tiring from holding itself up.

"How long have you been holding yourself up Toga?" Emma asked while shaking her head and heading to the bathroom to fill the blue plastic basin with fresh, warm water.

"Half an hour," the hunter exhaled as she entered again and sat down beside him, helping him to sit back against the headboard before putting the bowl in his lap.

"Maybe you will listen to me now hmm?" Emma grinned at the unhappy hunter. "Here, brush your teeth and shave if you want too, I'm washing your hair in a few minutes. You're starting to resemble the homeless guy on the freeway again," Emma grinned before kissing his still prickly cheek.

"You know how to make a man feel good about himself," he grumbled, Emma laughing softly.

* * *

"Aren't you going to berate me about how dirty my house was," the hunter said a bit groggily as he leaned over the bowl, Emma's fingers working the crisp smelling lather through his black locks again. As tough and bad as he tried to act, the hunter was quickly becoming a sucker for the nurse's fingers gliding through his hair and caressing the skin of his neck. Without having to worry about his reputation, Toga Yagari was slowly allowing himself to be more open with the woman he was coming to love so much…even to the point of melting into next to nothing as her fingers brought out yet another hum of pleasure from his scratchy lungs.

"It's no worse than my apartment," she chuckled, her fingers working toward his temples. "You have quite a gorgeous ride though," she laughed softly, the hunter chuckling quietly beneath her fingers.

"I had to reward myself somehow for agreeing to become faculty at that school," he told her. The two were silent as Emma continued to slowly massage the suds through the hunter's raven hair.

"I think you enjoy this too much," she giggled while finishing, the hunter nearly half asleep as she rinsed out the suds. "Don't fall asleep on me," she grinned while gathering his dripping locks in a towel.

The red head had to admit that the hunter looked a world better once cleanly shaven, his hair still defiantly lying in waves despite being damp.

"It doesn't bother you does it?" the hunter asked quietly while using his fingers to comb through his damp locks. This time Emma didn't have to ask what he was talking about as they both glanced at the bedside table drawer.

"No of course not," 'she replied. "Although, I don't know much about handguns," she admitted sheepishly. Emma watched as a faint grin passed over the hunters lips as he reached over and slowly pulled open the drawer, his expression quickly going tight as his body moved. The hunter soon had the gleaming weapon in his tube laden hand, slowly opening the chamber and emptying the silver bullets in his lap. Emma was looking at him quizzically when he grinned at her in that sly way of his, his hand motioning for her to come over. She sat down beside him as she heard the click of him closing the chamber, but she thought her heart was going to spring from her chest when she felt him scoot closer and bring his free arm around her.

"It's not that hard really," he said quietly, his damp locks brushing against her shoulder as his hand gently took hold of her own. "Rule number one though, is never put your finger on the trigger unless you are fully prepared to shoot," he said seriously before bringing her hand up to where he held the weapon in front of him, making her mirror his movements. Emma was afraid he would notice her slightly trembling hands, since the mixture of his body pressing against hers, along with the intoxicating scent of his freshly groomed self made it quite difficult to concentrate. And of course she couldn't hide it from the keen hunter.

"Also, don't let your emotions get in the way," he chuckled softly, Emma's face going beet red, which didn't get any better as the hunter pulled himself closer, his hands coming to cup each of hers around the weapon. The damp ends of his hair brushed against her shoulder, a few drops trickling down her skin as the hunter's warmth seeped through her blouse. "In all seriousness, you need to always be in control," she heard his deep voice say right next to her. "A lot of unnecessary accidents happen when you lose focus," he told her softly. The red head found herself calming down as she focused on what Yagari was teaching her. "There you go, but don't be so tense," he said as his hand came and gently pushed her rigid shoulder down, the other mimicking the movement as she felt another heat course through her body. "Now, all that's left is for when you decide to shoot," he said, his body leaning into hers, his face coming to rest against her own as he looked over her shoulder. His warm hands pressed against hers lightly, her body and posture now mirroring his in a firing stance. "Now, just breathe and when it comes down to it, you'll know when to fire," he said a bit heavily, Emma surprised at the grave tone of his words. Slowly the hunter lowered both of their arms, his body still against hers as they both sat in silence, the pistol sitting listlessly in the sheets. "I just hope…you never have to use it," he breathed a bit dejectedly, Emma's hand coming to rest on his arm in sympathy.

"I'm pretty sure I won't have to," she said trying to add some pep in her voice while turning her head to look into the hunter's deep blue eye. "Stop beating yourself up Yagari," she said playfully, her fingers brushing his bangs out of his eye. The hunter was just beginning to grin softly when his eye squeezed shut, a hissing exhale escaping his lungs as he lowered his head onto the red head's shoulder.

"Toga, what's wrong?" she asked him worriedly, her hand against his shoulder.

"Hurts…tired," he mumbled against her shirt, appearing completely worn out. Emma smiled softly despite his pain, her arm reaching behind her to comfortingly stroke her fingers through his hair.

"And this is coming from the man who was griping at me a few hours ago about not wanting to sleep," she said lightly, her head tilting to softly rest against his.

"I changed my mind," his warm breath tickled her neck.

"Are you going to listen to me now?" the red head asked, her fingers trailing down the back of his neck.

The hunter nodded weakly before Emma felt him smirking. "Well, at least until I'm not in pain anymore…then I'll probably just go back to being an annoyance," he said while lifting his head slightly, his arms coming to circle around her.

"I wouldn't call it an annoyance…more like just a stubborn man," the nurse said with a smirk of her own.

"Whatever," Yagari muttered before leaning his body against Emma's, her cheeks flushing as his warmth radiated against her, his head once again nestled in the crook of her neck.

"Sweetie if you're so tired you're going to have to let me up," Emma said with a sigh, although she was really quite happy where she was.

"I'm ok," he answered flatly.

"Toga…"

"I'm stuck,"

"Uh huh, sure you are,"

"If you make me move I'll probably say a lot of things a woman shouldn't hear,"

"I'm sure I've heard it all, now let me up,"

"It actually doesn't hurt very much to sit like this…are you really going to make me move?" his deep voice said against her neck, his sly grin against her skin both infuriating her infatuating her all at the same time.

"Are you guilt tripping me?"

"Maybe".

"I'm not winning this am I?" the nurse sighed while leaning her head back, a jolt of electricity running down her back as the hunter's lips brushed against her skin, his arms embracing her.

"Not a chance".

**I support Chevy can you tell lol. I'm sorry, Silverados are sexy trucks and a sexy man needs a sexy truck...I thought I was hot stuff driving my boss's around town running errands lol. And who doesn't love Robert Duvall as a cowboy? Especially a manly guy... Which brings me to a quick rant. I see a LOT of fanfics comparing Yagari to a cowboy. Trust me I've been around enough of them...and he definitely has the attitude and tight wranglers (we call them stranglers lol) but that hat. I just want to burn it. It's not a cowboy hat. I have enough of them to know. It's like it doesn't even know what it wants to be. It died in this story :) Now, somebody steal Tim McGraw's Stetson and give it to him...ok I'm done now. I just hate that hat with a burning passion. Anywho, please review! **


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